Pier Capital LLC Decreases Stake in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Pier Capital LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 32.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,795 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 18,560 shares during the period. Applied Industrial Technologies accounts for approximately 1.3% of Pier Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Pier Capital LLC’s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $9,290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AIT. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,672,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 382 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,924 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $429,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price target (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price target 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. Bank of America upgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $285.00 to $315.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.29.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of AIT stock opened at $234.69 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a current ratio of 3.76. The firm has a market cap of $9.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $248.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $244.56. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $177.68 and a one year high of $282.98.

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, 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. This is a boost 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.64%.

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.