Francesco Maione Sells 2,016 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Stock

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.3 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $310.35 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.11. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $308.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $302.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.02 billion, a PE ratio of 18.02, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $216.30 and a 52 week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on APD shares. UBS Group boosted their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.94.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter valued at about $555,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position 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 worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 1,592 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $474,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.3% during the third quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,480 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,334,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares during the period. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 11.4% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 674 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $201,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

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.