Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Shares Acquired by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 34.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 8,760 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.09% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $8,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AIT. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 106.0% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $84,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 382 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $114,000. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Performance

AIT traded down $2.10 during trading on Thursday, reaching $263.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 245,938 shares, compared to its average volume of 305,934. The company's fifty day moving average price is $254.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $238.68. The company has a market capitalization of $10.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a current ratio of 3.76. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $177.68 and a 52-week high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.18. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.37% and a net margin of 8.62%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. This is a positive change from Applied Industrial Technologies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Applied Industrial Technologies's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AIT shares. Loop Capital upped their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America upgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $260.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $265.00 price target (up from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $291.43.

Insider Activity at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, Director Mary Dean Hall sold 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.64, for a total value of $1,126,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 55,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,689,882.76. This trade represents a 6.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Industrial Technologies 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.