Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. Increases Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,112 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $935,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 151.3% during 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 acquiring an additional 14,981 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 67,507 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $16,355,000 after acquiring an additional 2,321 shares in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 38,976 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $11,605,000 after buying an additional 2,387 shares in the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 1st quarter worth $2,625,000. Finally, ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 33.8% in the 3rd quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 51,110 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,217,000 after buying an additional 12,925 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of APD stock opened at $330.38 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market capitalization of $73.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.82. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.24 and a 12-month high of $332.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $291.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $270.20.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 16.53%. Research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $310.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $295.00 to $364.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $320.82.

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.