Rialto Wealth Management LLC Invests $87,000 in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 301 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on APD shares. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $343.53.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. The trade was a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD stock opened at $316.76 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $311.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $307.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $227.53 and a 1 year high of $341.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. Analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 41.58%.

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.