Checchi Capital Advisers LLC Buys 118 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $505,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $588,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 140 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chesapeake Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the third quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 2,189 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $652,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,911 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,897 in the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on APD shares. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective 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 analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD stock opened at $313.79 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.81 billion, a PE ratio of 18.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company’s 50-day moving average is $309.18 and its 200-day moving average is $305.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $227.53 and a 1 year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (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%. Equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio 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.