Coho Partners Ltd. Has $54.92 Million Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Coho Partners Ltd. lowered its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 13.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 189,356 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 29,955 shares during the period. Air Products and Chemicals comprises about 2.5% of Coho Partners Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Coho Partners Ltd. owned about 0.09% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $54,921,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $888,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% in the third quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 11,593 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,452,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,343 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the third quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 1,813 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $540,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 22.3% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 203 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on APD. StockNews.com downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note 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 objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. 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 given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD opened at $315.30 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $216.30 and a 52-week high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $308.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $302.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is presently 41.11%.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the business’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 sale, the insider now directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. The trade was a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 9,749 shares of company stock valued at $3,030,032 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.