Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Bought by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 82,515 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,587 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $24,568,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,062,859 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $790,371,000 after buying an additional 122,676 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $861,722,000 after acquiring an additional 2,884,581 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 127.3% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,792,470 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $720,597,000 after acquiring an additional 1,564,169 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,043,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $608,312,000 after purchasing an additional 33,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,034,818 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $525,085,000 after purchasing an additional 5,140 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE APD opened at $334.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $315.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $285.61. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.24 and a 52-week high of $336.42.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.21%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on APD. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $291.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Vertical Research upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.53.

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.