Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Boston Financial Mangement LLC

Boston Financial Mangement LLC cut its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 155,967 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 994 shares during the period. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for 1.4% of Boston Financial Mangement LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Boston Financial Mangement LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $45,237,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Stockton raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 1,813 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $540,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 140 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 22.3% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 203 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chesapeake Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 2,189 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $652,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $316.89 on Thursday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $225.26 and a 1 year high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $70.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.85. The company’s fifty day moving average is $308.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $304.19.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. Analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total value of $993,565.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,411 shares of company stock valued at $4,186,642. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.