Eastern Bank Decreases Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Eastern Bank lessened its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 6.7% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 68,896 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,909 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $20,319,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Dodge & Cox increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 6,663,154 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,932,581,000 after acquiring an additional 64,960 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 129.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,429,147 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,574,670,000 after purchasing an additional 3,062,157 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,931,661 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,430,354,000 after purchasing an additional 57,314 shares during the last quarter. Mantle Ridge LP acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth about $1,191,344,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,583,156 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,039,259,000 after buying an additional 156,419 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $295.23 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $284.02 and a 200 day moving average of $290.75. The firm has a market cap of $65.70 billion, a PE ratio of 42.91, a PEG ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $243.69 and a one year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.48% and a net margin of 12.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.85 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on APD. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $290.00 target price for the company. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $334.75.

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.