Homestead Advisers Corp Has $8.29 Million Position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Homestead Advisers Corp decreased its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 18.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 7,900 shares during the quarter. Homestead Advisers Corp owned approximately 0.09% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $8,292,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 5,900.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% during the fourth 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 position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the third quarter valued at approximately $84,000. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Down 1.8 %

Applied Industrial Technologies stock opened at $233.16 on Thursday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $177.68 and a 1-year high of $282.98. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $247.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $244.79. The company has a market cap of $8.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.08.

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, 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. This is a boost from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Applied Industrial Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AIT has been the subject of several recent research reports. 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 report on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp cut their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.29.

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.