Buckhead Capital Management LLC Cuts Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Buckhead Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 18,160 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 88 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for 1.7% of Buckhead Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Buckhead Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,267,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 11,593 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,452,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. CX Institutional grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,343 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 1,813 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $540,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was 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 directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at $1,173,204. This trade represents a 34.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 9,749 shares of company stock valued at $3,030,032. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. 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 target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE APD opened at $315.30 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $308.56 and its 200 day moving average is $302.65. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $216.30 and a twelve month high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 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 forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 41.11%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.