Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Amalgamated Bank

Amalgamated Bank lessened its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 43,580 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 473 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $12,640,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of APD. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 140 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Chesapeake Wealth Management boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 2,189 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $652,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Keyes Stange & Wooten Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% in the third quarter. Keyes Stange & Wooten Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,560 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $762,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $317.51 on Wednesday. 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 $70.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.53 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $308.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $305.34.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 payout ratio is 41.11%.

Insider Activity

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company’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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,911 shares of company stock worth $4,660,897 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. 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 for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of 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. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.94.

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.