Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc Grows Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 37,793 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 64 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $11,144,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Redmond Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $653,000. Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. now owns 3,495 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,014,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 2,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $583,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. PYA Waltman Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. PYA Waltman Capital LLC now owns 3,577 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,038,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compass Capital Corp MA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $322,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on APD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, January 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.94.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. This trade represents a 28.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $462,240.54. This trade represents a 50.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 14,911 shares of company stock worth $4,660,897. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $310.02 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.10 and a twelve month high of $341.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $308.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $304.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.97 billion, a PE ratio of 18.00, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business 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. 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. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.11%.

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.