Legato Capital Management LLC Purchases 1,155 Shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Legato Capital Management LLC increased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 72.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AIT. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $84,139,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,233,000. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 456.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 130,895 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,207,000 after acquiring an additional 107,365 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $213,590,000. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $13,034,000. Institutional investors own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Up 1.2 %

Applied Industrial Technologies stock opened at $263.25 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $254.84 and a 200 day moving average of $236.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.08. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $177.68 and a 12-month high of $282.98. The company has a current ratio of 3.76, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.18. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.62% and a return on equity of 22.37%. As a group, research analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.64, for a total transaction of $1,126,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 55,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,689,882.76. This trade represents a 6.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mary Dean Hall sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.08, for a total transaction of $605,176.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $952,326.96. This trade represents 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on AIT. Bank of America upgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $285.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Industrial Technologies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $291.43.

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.