Principal Street Partners LLC Acquires 1,068 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Principal Street Partners LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 96.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,175 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,068 shares during the period. Principal Street Partners LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Avestar Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,068 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $318,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 16,844 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,015,000 after buying an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 25.2% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,165,733 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $350,139,000 after purchasing an additional 234,322 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.5% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 17,430 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,190,000 after purchasing an additional 5,024 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock traded down $2.62 on Tuesday, reaching $331.35. The company had a trading volume of 27,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,614,510. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.24 and a 52-week high of $336.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.52. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $311.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $283.75. The firm has a market cap of $73.69 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 41.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $323.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.53.

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.