Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Cuts Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC decreased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 34.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,427 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,253 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $723,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 62.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,230,051 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,720,704,000 after buying an additional 4,309,040 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $861,722,000 after acquiring an additional 2,884,581 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2,931.0% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,796,531 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $444,352,000 after purchasing an additional 1,737,260 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 127.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,792,470 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $720,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564,169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,685.4% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 764,489 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $249,698,000 after purchasing an additional 721,671 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD opened at $315.88 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.24 and a 12-month high of $332.42. The company has a market cap of $70.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $303.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $278.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $329.76.

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.