Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Long Road Investment Counsel LLC

Long Road Investment Counsel LLC cut its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,415 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals comprises approximately 1.7% of Long Road Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Long Road Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,181,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,448,570,000 after acquiring an additional 88,806 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth about $885,371,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,088,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $605,734,000 after purchasing an additional 30,888 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $555,967,000 after purchasing an additional 70,759 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $486,343,000 after purchasing an additional 19,209 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of APD stock opened at $295.96 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $312.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $308.25. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $65.84 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, 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.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 41.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $462,240.54. This represents a 50.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note 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 company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals 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.