1ST Source Bank Cuts Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

1ST Source Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,991 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 303 shares during the period. 1ST Source Bank’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $2,608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at about $885,371,000. Sachem Head Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter valued at about $163,013,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter valued at about $159,886,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at about $71,307,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 25.2% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,165,733 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $350,139,000 after acquiring an additional 234,322 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on APD. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $342.65.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total transaction of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $462,240.54. The trade was a 50.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.4 %

APD opened at $291.82 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.53 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $312.54 and its 200 day moving average is $308.12. The stock has a market cap of $64.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company 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 is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio 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.