Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) is VELA Investment Management LLC’s 9th Largest Position

VELA Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 11.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,894 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,774 shares during the period. Applied Industrial Technologies makes up about 1.5% of VELA Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. VELA Investment Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $5,243,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIT. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth $84,139,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth $32,233,000. Fiera Capital Corp raised its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 456.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 130,895 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,207,000 after acquiring an additional 107,365 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth $13,034,000. Finally, Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth $12,897,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Price Performance

Shares of Applied Industrial Technologies stock opened at $244.98 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 3.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.68 and a twelve month high of $282.98. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $253.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $240.61. The firm has a market cap of $9.40 billion, a PE ratio of 24.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.08.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.18. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.37% and a net margin of 8.62%. Sell-side analysts predict 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 disclosed 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 0.75%. This is a boost 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 payout ratio is presently 18.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AIT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $260.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $291.43.

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.