Cardinal Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Cardinal Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 119,552 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 968 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals makes up 1.5% of Cardinal Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Cardinal Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $35,595,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Evexia Wealth LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Evexia Wealth LLC now owns 14,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,518,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. Cox Capital Mgt LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.5% in the third quarter. Cox Capital Mgt LLC now owns 11,741 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,496,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.0% in the third quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 1,263 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at approximately $555,000. Finally, JGP Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.0% in the third quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC now owns 45,638 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,588,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on APD. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $295.00 to $364.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Vertical Research upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $276.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $291.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $316.47.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

NYSE:APD opened at $316.66 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $284.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $265.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $70.40 billion, a PE ratio of 28.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.82. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.24 and a fifty-two week high of $323.86.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 16.53%. Analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company 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 2.24%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 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.