Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. Sells 250 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 11.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,971 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 250 shares during the period. Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $572,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,448,570,000 after purchasing an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $861,722,000 after buying an additional 2,884,581 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,043,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $608,312,000 after buying an additional 33,313 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 25.2% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,936,582 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $499,735,000 after acquiring an additional 389,380 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $555,967,000 after acquiring an additional 70,759 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $329.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market cap of $73.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a 50 day moving average of $310.14 and a 200-day moving average of $296.47. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $212.24 and a one year high of $337.00.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is presently 41.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on APD shares. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $323.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $295.00 to $364.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $375.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $335.65.

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.