Melissa N. Schaeffer Sells 3,233 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Stock

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of APD stock opened at $310.35 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $308.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $302.60. The stock has a market cap of $69.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $216.30 and a 12 month high of $341.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 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%. On average, 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% during 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 purchasing an additional 6,952 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 374,442 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $111,488,000 after acquiring an additional 139,223 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at about $7,269,000. Forsta AP Fonden boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 13.4% in the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 45,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,607,000 after acquiring an additional 5,400 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,074,000 after acquiring an additional 4,916 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. 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. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.