First County Bank CT Sells 192 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

First County Bank CT cut its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 21.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 716 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 192 shares during the period. First County Bank CT’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $211,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $945,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 71,671 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $20,787,000 after purchasing an additional 3,830 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $246,000. Finally, Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 311.6% in the fourth quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 9,923 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,858,000 after purchasing an additional 7,512 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total transaction of $181,706.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,811.50. The trade was a 45.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Thursday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $290.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $331.00.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

NYSE:APD opened at $278.99 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $62.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $271.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $297.55. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.69 and a twelve month high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. The business’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last 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 year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.07%.

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.