Prudential Financial Inc. Boosts Stake in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Prudential Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 64.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,523 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 4,921 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $3,326,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AIT. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 5,900.0% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $84,000. 93.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AIT shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 target price (up from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $284.29.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Up 3.1 %

Applied Industrial Technologies stock opened at $236.62 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.76 and a quick ratio of 2.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.08 billion, a PE ratio of 23.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $245.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $245.85. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $177.68 and a 12 month high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.18. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.62% and a return on equity of 22.37%. On average, analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. This is a boost from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is presently 18.64%.

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.