Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 375,216 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 10% from the previous session’s volume of 340,756 shares.The stock last traded at $250.62 and had previously closed at $249.58.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $285.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $260.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Industrial Technologies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $285.71.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 3.78, a quick ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $258.39 and a 200 day moving average of $225.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 1.08.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.08 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.57% and a return on equity of 22.68%. The business’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.39 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Applied Industrial Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.10%.

Insider Activity at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.64, for a total value of $1,126,560.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 55,709 shares in the company, valued at $15,689,882.76. The trade was a 6.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mary Dean Hall sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.08, for a total value of $605,176.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $952,326.96. The trade was a 38.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.67% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Industrial Technologies

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies in the third quarter worth $34,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 106.0% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 171 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the second quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 68.1% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 190 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Company Profile

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc distributes industrial motion, power, control, and automation technology solutions in North America, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. It operates in two segments, Service Center Based Distribution, and Engineered Solutions. The company distributes bearings, power transmission products, engineered fluid power components and systems, specialty flow control solutions, advanced automation products, industrial rubber products, linear motion components, automation solutions, tools, safety products, oilfield supplies, and other industrial and maintenance supplies; and motors, belting, drives, couplings, pumps, hydraulic and pneumatic components, filtration supplies, valves, fittings, process instrumentation, actuators, and hoses, filtration supplies, as well as other related supplies for general operational needs of customers' machinery and equipment.