Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Columbia Asset Management

Columbia Asset Management trimmed its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 33.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,785 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 910 shares during the period. Columbia Asset Management’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $526,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Generali Investments Management Co LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Financial Perspectives Inc grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 33.3% in the fourth quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 140 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.00.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $280.50 on Thursday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $243.69 and a one year high of $341.14. The company has a market cap of $62.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. 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 business’s 50 day moving average price is $271.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $296.84.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.85 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.55%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 104.07%.

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.