Farther Finance Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,789 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $809,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in APD. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% during the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on APD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Bank of America lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $342.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were 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 owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total transaction of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,811.50. The trade was a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604 over the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $291.82 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $64.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.95, a P/E/G 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 fifty day moving average price of $312.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $307.90.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.45%. 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 dividend payout ratio is 41.58%.

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.