Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Has $7.20 Million Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lowered its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 26,279 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 332 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $7,195,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of APD. Roble Belko & Company Inc bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 39.1% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 551 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $151,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $3,878,000. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 23.3% in the 4th quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 1,572 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at $315,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on APD. Bank of America upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $264.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Argus lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $304.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $276.36.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $233.78 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $236.44 and its 200 day moving average is $256.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.81. The company has a market capitalization of $51.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth 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.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued 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%. Air Products and Chemicals’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.64 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

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

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.