Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. Purchases 673 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 4.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 15,505 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 673 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.2% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,062,859 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $790,371,000 after acquiring an additional 122,676 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% in 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 period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 127.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,792,470 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $720,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564,169 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,043,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $608,312,000 after purchasing an additional 33,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,034,818 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $525,085,000 after buying an additional 5,140 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. 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 report on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Mizuho lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Vertical Research upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $305.00 to $365.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $331.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE:APD opened at $331.83 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $310.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $282.91. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.24 and a 1-year high of $332.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.77 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.21%.

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.