Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC Sells 345 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC lowered its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 29.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 824 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 345 shares during the period. Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,414,008 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,668,923,000 after purchasing an additional 1,115,729 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 4,163,043 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,246,957,000 after purchasing an additional 38,283 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,829,919 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,085,399,000 after purchasing an additional 39,215 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth about $962,356,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,931,619 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $528,877,000 after purchasing an additional 66,906 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $229.08 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $235.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $257.98. 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 $50.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.24 and a 52-week high of $307.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.00 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.84% and a net margin of 18.82%. The company’s revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.64 earnings per share. Sell-side 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st will be given 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 3.09%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Mizuho lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $304.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $245.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $305.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $276.36.

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.