AIT
Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc.
AIT has lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
VRT
Vertiv Holdings Co
VRT has the edge over AIT overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
AIT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Strong |
AIT's profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue and cash flow are stable.
VRT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
VRT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently strong.
AIT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 17x | $194 | -35% |
| Fair | 23x | $258 | -14% |
| Forward | 24x | $300 | — |
| Current | 27x | $300 | — |
| Expensive | 30x | $344 | +15% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
AIT's PE is in its expensive range at 27x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 24x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
VRT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 23x | $210 | — |
| Current | 39x | $210 | — |
| Cheap | 58x | $308 | +47% |
| Fair | 72x | $383 | +83% |
| Expensive | 88x | $472 | +125% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
VRT has the edge over AIT in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
AIT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for AIT, with profitability holding steady.
VRT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Moderate |
VRT has the edge over AIT on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
AIT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $12.34 | +9.3% |
| Q3 2026 | $11.29 | +8.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.95 | +8.2% |
| Q1 2026 | $10.59 | +6.3% |
| Q4 2025 | $10.51 | +6.5% |
| Q3 2025 | $10.39 | +6% |
| Q2 2025 | $10.12 | +3% |
| Q1 2025 | $9.96 | +4.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $9.87 | +3.6% |
AIT's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $11.29 over the past year, up 8.7% from the year before, and higher year over year for 23 quarters in a row.
VRT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $9.14 | +71% |
| Q3 2026 | $5.35 | +102% |
| Q2 2026 | $4.42 | +111% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.98 | +131% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.41 | +166% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.65 | +75% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.09 | +62% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.72 | +64% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.28 | +7.6% |
VRT has the edge over AIT on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
AIT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.3B | +7.6% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.4B | +10% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.3B | +7.3% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.2B | +8.4% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.2B | +9.2% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.2B | +5.5% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B | +1.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.1B | -0.4% |
AIT's revenue has grown year over year for seven quarters in a row: $1.3B last quarter, up 7.6% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 11% | +0.4 points |
| Q2 2026 | 12% | +0.8 points |
| Q1 2026 | 11% | -0.1 points |
| Q4 2025 | 11% | -0.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 11% | +0.5 points |
| Q2 2025 | 11% | -1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 11% | +0.5 points |
| Q4 2024 | 11% | +0.6 points |
AIT's operating margin was 11% last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago.
VRT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.3B | +61% |
| Q2 2026 | $3.3B | +24% |
| Q1 2026 | $2.6B | +30% |
| Q4 2025 | $2.9B | +23% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.7B | +29% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.6B | +35% |
| Q1 2025 | $2B | +24% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.3B | +26% |
VRT has the edge over AIT on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 23% | +3.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 19% | +2.7 points |
| Q1 2026 | 17% | +2.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 20% | +0.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 19% | +1.4 points |
| Q2 2025 | 17% | -0.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 14% | +1.9 points |
| Q4 2024 | 19% | +4.2 points |
VRT has the edge over AIT on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
AIT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $73.4M | -35% |
| Q2 2026 | $159.7M | +16% |
| Q1 2026 | $95.4M | -17% |
| Q4 2025 | $93.4M | +3.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $112M | -8.3% |
| Q2 2025 | $138.2M | +24% |
| Q1 2025 | $114.9M | +50% |
| Q4 2024 | $89.9M | -6.5% |
AIT's free cash flow has been positive every quarter for seven years: $422M over the past year, down 7.3% from the year before.
VRT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $654.9M | +41% |
| Q2 2026 | $926.5M | +233% |
| Q1 2026 | $654.2M | +145% |
| Q4 2025 | $885.6M | +143% |
| Q3 2025 | $463.5M | +36% |
| Q2 2025 | $277.9M | -19% |
| Q1 2025 | $266.8M | +162% |
| Q4 2024 | $364.5M | +18% |
VRT has the edge over AIT on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
AIT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.8% | -677K shares |
| 1 year | -2.9% | -1.1M shares |
| 3 years | -5.4% | -2.1M shares |
| 5 years | -4.9% | -1.9M shares |
| Available history | -4.8% | -1.9M shares |
AIT has the edge over VRT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $80M |
| Q2 2026 | $80.8M |
| Q1 2026 | $93M |
| Q4 2025 | $90.2M |
| Q3 2025 | $53.2M |
| Q2 2025 | $73M |
| Q1 2025 | $49.7M |
| Q4 2024 | $20.1M |
AIT spent $344M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 76% from the year before.
VRT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | -64.9K shares |
| 1 year | +0.4% | +1.8M shares |
| 3 years | +1.1% | +4.4M shares |
| 5 years | +10% | +36M shares |
| Available history | +63% | +152M shares |
VRT has 393M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | — |
| Q4 2024 | — |
| Q3 2024 | — |
| Q2 2024 | — |
| Q1 2024 | $599.9M |
AIT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.5x | Very low |
AIT's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
VRT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 1.0x | Healthy |
VRT has the edge over AIT on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
AIT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 9.2 | Oversold |
AIT's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 9 (oversold).
VRT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 26.4 | Neutral |
VRT's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 26 (neutral).
AIT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | AIT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 27x | 24x | 11% above |
| PE % | 71 | 58 | 13 pts above |
AIT has the edge over VRT on valuation relative to its sector.
VRT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | VRT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 39x | 24x | 63% above |
| PE % | 3 | 58 | 55 pts below |
VRT is trading at 39x earnings, a 63% premium to the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
AIT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $317.1 | 5.5% below |
| 20 week MA | $329.2 | 8.9% below |
| 50 week MA | $302.8 | 1% below |
| 100 week MA | $274.5 | 9.2% above |
| 200 week MA | $225.3 | 33% above |
AIT has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 33% above its 200-week average.
VRT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $221.8 | 5.5% below |
| 20 week MA | $254.4 | 18% below |
| 50 week MA | $253.9 | 17% below |
| 100 week MA | $189.1 | 11% above |
| 200 week MA | $123.5 | 70% above |
VRT has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 70% above its 200-week average.
AIT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $66.6 | $78.1 | +17% |
| 2021 | $78.1 | $101.6 | +30% |
| 2022 | $101.6 | $126.3 | +24% |
| 2023 | $126.3 | $172.7 | +37% |
| 2024 | $172.7 | $241.6 | +40% |
| 2025 | $241.6 | $264.8 | +9.6% |
| 2026 YTD | $264.8 | $299.8 | +13% |
AIT has finished every year since 2020 higher, and it's up 13% so far in 2026.
VRT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $10.9 | $18.9 | +73% |
| 2021 | $18.9 | $24.9 | +31% |
| 2022 | $24.9 | $12.8 | -48% |
| 2023 | $12.8 | $48.0 | +275% |
| 2024 | $48.0 | $115.1 | +140% |
| 2025 | $115.1 | $167.6 | +46% |
| 2026 YTD | $167.6 | $209.6 | +25% |
VRT has the edge over AIT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.