Sage Capital Advisors llc Increases Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Sage Capital Advisors llc raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,806 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 74 shares during the quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,367,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $945,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 34,914 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,127,000 after buying an additional 1,436 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 44.3% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 23,957 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,948,000 after purchasing an additional 7,353 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,402 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $987,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $437,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.5%

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $273.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.69 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $272.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $297.77.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.14). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.85 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 104.07%.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total transaction of $181,706.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on APD shares. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $330.00 to $282.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays cut their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup cut their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $331.00.

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.