Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Stock Position Decreased by WASHINGTON TRUST Co

WASHINGTON TRUST Co lessened its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 25.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,701 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 580 shares during the period. WASHINGTON TRUST Co’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of APD. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 88.7% in the 3rd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total value of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,173,204. The trade was a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,749 shares of company stock worth $3,030,032 in the last quarter. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on APD. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective for the company in a 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 for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of 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 report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $316.74 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $70.44 billion, a PE ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $220.26 and a 52 week high of $341.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $308.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $303.10.

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 net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. As a group, research analysts expect 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.11%.

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.