Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $318.95 and last traded at $316.5430, with a volume of 6769 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $313.67.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Robert W. Baird set a $317.00 price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Industrial Technologies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $313.67.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $11.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $298.02 and a 200-day moving average of $278.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 2.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.23 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.34% and a return on equity of 21.64%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.57 EPS. 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. On average, research analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 10.7 EPS for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.04, for a total transaction of $2,448,320.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 40,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,471,436.04. This represents a 16.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Industrial Technologies

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIT. Capital International Investors bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $200,456,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 22,451.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 585,423 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $150,319,000 after purchasing an additional 582,827 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $125,044,000. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 33,181.4% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 300,864 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $81,322,000 after buying an additional 299,960 shares during the period. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 4,933.8% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 264,575 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,935,000 after buying an additional 259,319 shares during the last quarter. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

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.