Insider Selling: Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) VP Sells 4,500 Shares of Stock

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $310.38 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $69.02 billion, a PE ratio of 18.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $216.30 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $309.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $301.89.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 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 paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 41.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $339.94.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,448,570,000 after purchasing an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $885,371,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $861,722,000 after buying an additional 2,884,581 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,088,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $605,734,000 after buying an additional 30,888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 33,313 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.