World Investment Advisors Grows Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 41,289 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,866 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors’ holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $11,975,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APD. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $588,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $888,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded 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. UBS Group lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $340.88.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD opened at $295.05 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.13, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $310.28 and a 200-day moving average of $309.48. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.53 and a 12-month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date 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 currently 41.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $462,240.54. This represents a 50.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 in the last quarter. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.