Strengthening Families & Communities LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Strengthening Families & Communities LLC cut its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 96.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 321 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 7,840 shares during the quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $93,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Wealth Services boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 7,607 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,206,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,724,000. Core Alternative Capital grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Core Alternative Capital now owns 24,672 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,138,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $366,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 21.2% in the fourth quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 1,598 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on APD shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group increased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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 research note on Friday. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Citigroup boosted 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. 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 MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $310.38 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $309.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $301.89. The firm has a market cap of $69.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $216.30 and a 1-year high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate 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 company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.58%.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.