Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) Given New $275.00 Price Target at KeyCorp

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) had its target price reduced by KeyCorp from $325.00 to $275.00 in a report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on AIT. Bank of America upgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.29.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of AIT opened at $227.14 on Monday. Applied Industrial Technologies has a 52-week low of $177.68 and a 52-week high of $282.98. The business’s fifty day moving average is $250.57 and its 200-day moving average is $243.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a current ratio of 3.76. The firm has a market cap of $8.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.01, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is presently 18.64%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 30.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,275 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $305,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $11,938,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $327,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 37.8% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 3,389 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $812,000 after purchasing an additional 930 shares during the period. Finally, US Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $435,000. 93.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

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.