Plancorp LLC Grows Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Plancorp LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,337 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Plancorp LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $388,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $588,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $888,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total value of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. The trade was a 34.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of APD stock opened at $291.35 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $227.53 and a 1 year high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $313.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $308.45. The company has a market cap of $64.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

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 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%. Research analysts predict 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.