Norges Bank Takes $129.69 Million Position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 541,570 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $129,690,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.41% of Applied Industrial Technologies at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 33,930 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,125,000 after acquiring an additional 3,306 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 32.2% in the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 238,975 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $57,227,000 after purchasing an additional 58,140 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 12,309 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,948,000 after purchasing an additional 1,566 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 64.7% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 12,523 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,326,000 after purchasing an additional 4,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FCA Corp TX acquired a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $545,000. Institutional investors own 93.52% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of AIT stock traded down $5.51 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $211.16. 581,168 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 281,425. The stock has a market cap of $8.10 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 3.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $177.68 and a 12 month high of $282.98. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $243.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $245.89.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. This is an increase 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 currently 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.