Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Stock Position Lessened by Bfsg LLC

Bfsg LLC decreased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,960 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 111 shares during the quarter. Bfsg LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $2,179,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of APD. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Legacy Bridge LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on APD shares. TheStreet lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Bank of America raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $264.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Argus lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. UBS Group lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $328.00 to $241.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $295.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $276.36.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE APD traded up $0.97 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $234.68. The stock had a trading volume of 1,293,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,732,164. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $236.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $256.46. The firm has a market cap of $52.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.24 and a fifty-two week high of $307.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.58.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.00 by ($0.18). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.84% and a net margin of 18.82%. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 1st will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 28th. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 67.56%.

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.