Norges Bank Buys Shares of 486,990 Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. $AIT

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 486,990 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $125,044,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.31% of Applied Industrial Technologies at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AIT. US Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. US Asset Management LLC now owns 1,266 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,410 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $369,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 653 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $170,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 1.1% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,631 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,209,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 11.9% during the third quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 516 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $135,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Up 0.2%

Applied Industrial Technologies stock opened at $314.10 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $11.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.66, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.95. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.13 and a 52-week high of $317.10. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $294.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $277.03.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.02. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.34% and a return on equity of 21.64%. The business had revenue of $1.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.57 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Industrial Technologies has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.850-2.960 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 10.640-10.750 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 10.7 EPS for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AIT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $317.00 price target on Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $313.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.04, for a total value of $2,448,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 40,751 shares in the company, valued at $12,471,436.04. This trade represents a 16.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Industrial Technologies Profile

Applied Industrial Technologies, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AIT, is a leading distributor of industrial products and services. The company offers a comprehensive range of bearings, power transmission components, fluid power products, industrial rubber products, and automation solutions. Through its network of distribution centers and branch locations, Applied Industrial Technologies serves diverse end markets including manufacturing, oil and gas, mining, food and beverage, and wastewater treatment.

Founded in 1923 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Applied Industrial Technologies has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.