Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by American International Group Inc.

American International Group Inc. decreased its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,311 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,077 shares during the quarter. American International Group Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $17,608,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Sachetta LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Security National Bank purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 257.6% in the fourth quarter. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on APD. Wolfe Research began coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $279.00 target price for the company. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $295.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $245.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $275.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $287.29.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD traded down $10.17 on Friday, hitting $275.14. 1,503,360 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,585,577. 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 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s fifty day moving average is $252.60 and its 200 day moving average is $251.63.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 20.32%. Air Products and Chemicals’s quarterly revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.74 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.3 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 1st. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.90%.

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.