Mission Wealth Management LP Acquires 249 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Mission Wealth Management LP boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 16.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,808 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $524,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,494 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,914,000 after acquiring an additional 6,952 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 374,442 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $111,488,000 after buying an additional 139,223 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at $7,269,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,074,000 after buying an additional 4,916 shares during the period. Finally, Jensen Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 65.0% during the 3rd quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,170 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,921,000 after buying an additional 5,190 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities 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 target for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $343.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $311.70 on Thursday. 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 company has a market cap of $69.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.10, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $227.53 and a 1 year high of $341.14. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $310.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $306.65.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (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%. Research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.58%.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,911 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,897 over the last ninety days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.