DB Fitzpatrick & Co Inc Decreases Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

DB Fitzpatrick & Co Inc lowered its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 11.0% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,822 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 472 shares during the period. Air Products and Chemicals makes up approximately 1.1% of DB Fitzpatrick & Co Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. DB Fitzpatrick & Co Inc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,127,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Community Bank N.A. increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 5.2% in the first quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 9,810 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,893,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the period. Grandview Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 5.8% in the first quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC now owns 913 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.8% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 26,069 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,688,000 after buying an additional 720 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 16.9% in the first quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 3,638 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,073,000 after buying an additional 526 shares during the period. Finally, PUREfi Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter worth about $335,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $290.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $332.41.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $275.32 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $61.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.02, a PEG ratio of 5.32 and a beta of 0.86. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.69 and a 52-week high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company’s 50 day moving average is $272.61 and its 200 day moving average is $293.27.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.14). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 12.76% and a return on equity of 15.48%. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.85 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.