Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 120,328 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 10,967 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $28,815,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AIT. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 5,900.0% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth about $84,000. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp lowered their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective (up 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 issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.29.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE AIT opened at $233.16 on Thursday. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $177.68 and a 1-year high of $282.98. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $247.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $244.79. The stock has a market capitalization 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. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.76 and a quick ratio of 2.55.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS 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 issued a $0.46 dividend. This is a positive change from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date 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.