Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Purchased by Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich

Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 779 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 49 shares during the quarter. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,448,570,000 after purchasing an additional 88,806 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 2,884,581 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $608,312,000 after buying an additional 33,313 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $555,967,000 after buying an additional 70,759 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $486,343,000 after buying an additional 19,209 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. This trade represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,749 shares of company stock worth $3,030,032 over the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on APD. StockNews.com downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $309.50 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $68.83 billion, a PE ratio of 17.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $309.32 and a 200-day moving average of $302.26. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $216.30 and a one year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.11%.

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.