Fayez Sarofim & Co Sells 29,633 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Fayez Sarofim & Co reduced its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 9.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 272,911 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 29,633 shares during the quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co owned 0.12% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $79,155,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Select Asset Management & Trust bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $290,000. Senator Investment Group LP bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $133,551,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 5,521 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,602,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 47.3% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 12,939 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,753,000 after purchasing an additional 4,152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 72,686 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $21,082,000 after purchasing an additional 686 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on APD. Citigroup dropped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $332.18.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total transaction of $474,255.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $462,240.54. The trade was a 50.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $262.88 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $292.75 and a 200-day moving average of $306.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.48 billion, a PE ratio of 15.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $228.81 and a 52-week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. On average, analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.58%.

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.