Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by ProVise Management Group LLC

ProVise Management Group LLC lessened its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,144 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,079 shares during the period. ProVise Management Group LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,262,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of APD. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total transaction of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. This trade represents a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 in the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 1.4 %

APD opened at $291.56 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $64.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.93, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $227.53 and a one year high of $341.14. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $312.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $308.34.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 41.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $342.65.

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.