Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Shares Sold by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 22.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 158,185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 46,245 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.41% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $35,296,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 1.2% in the second quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 630,915 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $122,398,000 after acquiring an additional 7,720 shares during the last quarter. Dundas Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,805,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 221,823 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,495,000 after purchasing an additional 49,500 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 65.6% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 144,621 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,269,000 after purchasing an additional 57,283 shares during the period. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp grew 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 worth $29,207,000 after buying an additional 107,365 shares during the last quarter. 93.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on AIT. StockNews.com upgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Industrial Technologies has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $267.86.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Down 1.4 %

AIT stock opened at $266.73 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $230.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $208.06. The company has a market capitalization of $10.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 1.03. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $155.47 and a 52 week high of $276.97. The company has a current ratio of 3.78, a quick ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.08 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.68% and a net margin of 8.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.39 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 15.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Kurt W. Loring sold 3,366 shares of Applied Industrial Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.02, for a total value of $703,561.32. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 19,315 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,037,221.30. The trade was a 14.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Neil A. Schrimsher sold 3,703 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.24, for a total transaction of $748,894.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 205,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,602,385.92. This represents a 1.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,927 shares of company stock worth $2,439,116. 1.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.