Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by PDS Planning Inc

PDS Planning Inc lessened its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 9.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 967 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 98 shares during the quarter. PDS Planning Inc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $265,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,696.4% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 518,197 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $142,344,000 after purchasing an additional 489,350 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 64.2% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 766,076 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $217,106,000 after purchasing an additional 299,649 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 26,852.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 275,720 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $754,920,000 after purchasing an additional 274,697 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,302,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,502,717,000 after purchasing an additional 235,037 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 9,070.2% in the 3rd quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 185,238 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $52,496,000 after purchasing an additional 183,218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on APD shares. Barclays lowered their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $245.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, March 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $279.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $305.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $328.00 to $241.00 in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $276.36.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE APD opened at $233.78 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $51.97 billion, a PE ratio of 22.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.24 and a fifty-two week high of $307.71. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $236.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $256.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.20 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.84% and a net margin of 18.82%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 28th. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.56%.

Air Products and Chemicals Profile

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc provides atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, equipment, and related services in the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, India, and internationally. The company produces atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, and argon; process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and syngas; and specialty gases for customers in various industries, including refining, chemical, manufacturing, electronics, energy production, medical, food, and metals.