Grove Bank & Trust Sells 322 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Grove Bank & Trust lessened its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 40.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 484 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 322 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $144,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of APD. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 151.3% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 24,881 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,028,000 after purchasing an additional 14,981 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 67,507 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $16,355,000 after purchasing an additional 2,321 shares during the period. Trilogy Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,625,000. FORA Capital LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 13.0% during the first quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 33,823 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,194,000 after purchasing an additional 3,881 shares during the period. Finally, Mizuho Markets Americas LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 140.1% in the first quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 39,164 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $9,488,000 after buying an additional 22,850 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup increased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $291.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $276.00 to $281.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. One 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 an average target price of $316.47.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD stock opened at $320.58 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $285.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $266.45. The stock has a market cap of $71.27 billion, a PE ratio of 28.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.82. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $212.24 and a one year high of $323.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. On average, analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.33 EPS 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 paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.90%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.