First Republic Investment Management Inc. Has $19.70 Million Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

First Republic Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD – Get Rating) by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 84,633 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,160 shares during the quarter. First Republic Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $19,697,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Zullo Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,029 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,468 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $834,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 1,133 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Eudaimonia Partners LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Eudaimonia Partners LLC now owns 929 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Curbstone Financial Management Corp increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Curbstone Financial Management Corp now owns 1,886 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $439,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Sean D. Major sold 485 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.00, for a total transaction of $151,805.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,468,075. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on APD. Bank of America increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $281.00 to $308.00 in a research report on Monday, November 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 2nd. Vertical Research cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $328.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 4th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $294.00 to $339.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 15th. Finally, Societe Generale cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $340.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, January 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $313.79.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $313.34 on Wednesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $216.24 and a 12-month high of $328.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $310.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $271.23. The stock has a market cap of $69.52 billion, a PE ratio of 30.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.83.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 3rd. The basic materials company reported $2.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.12. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.31% and a net margin of 17.77%. The firm had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.51 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 11.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 30th. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 63.91%.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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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; specialty gases; and equipment for the production or processing of gases comprising air separation units and non-cryogenic generators for customers in various industries, including refining, chemical, manufacturing, electronics, magnetic resonance imaging, energy production, medical, food, and metals.