Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Position Cut by Access Financial Services Inc.

Access Financial Services Inc. reduced its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 13.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 859 shares during the period. Access Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,417,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in APD. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 167.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,921,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,894,973,000 after purchasing an additional 4,330,471 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth about $852,288,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 50.6% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,547,202 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $374,841,000 after acquiring an additional 520,179 shares during the period. Scharf Investments LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 1st quarter valued at about $87,173,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 66.1% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 860,519 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $207,807,000 after purchasing an additional 342,322 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded up $1.43 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $275.86. 514,167 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,682,664. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.24 and a 1-year high of $307.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The business has a fifty day moving average of $266.97 and a 200 day moving average of $252.41. The company has a market capitalization of $61.33 billion, a PE ratio of 24.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.16. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 21.24%. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is presently 63.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $276.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $295.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.40.

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.