Guidance Capital Inc. Makes New Investment in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Guidance Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,797 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $811,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $861,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,884,581 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 240.7% during the third quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,023,433 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $304,717,000 after buying an additional 723,019 shares during the period. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 318.7% in the third quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 948,723 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $282,473,000 after acquiring an additional 722,132 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,685.4% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 764,489 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $249,698,000 after acquiring an additional 721,671 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 29,957.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 718,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,138,000,000 after purchasing an additional 715,686 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup upped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $323.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $340.50.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $335.45 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $310.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $299.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.52. The firm has a market cap of $74.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.24 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 41.21%.

Air Products and Chemicals Profile

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.