Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Acquired by Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 2.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,970 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 587 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $6,082,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of APD. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,494 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,914,000 after buying an additional 6,952 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 374,442 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $111,488,000 after acquiring an additional 139,223 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,269,000. Forsta AP Fonden increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 13.4% during the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 45,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,607,000 after purchasing an additional 5,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,074,000 after purchasing an additional 4,916 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $330.00 to $350.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group upped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Mizuho lifted their price objective 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. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $340.50.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD stock opened at $333.45 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $310.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $300.43. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.24 and a 52-week high of $341.14. The company has a market capitalization of $74.15 billion, a PE ratio of 19.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 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.