Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Acquired by Hudson Bay Capital Management LP

Hudson Bay Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 145.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,012 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,012 shares during the quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $7,835,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Generali Investments Management Co LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup decreased their price objective 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. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $330.38.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,811.50. The trade was a 45.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were 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 owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. This trade represents a 28.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,751 shares of company stock worth $1,812,572 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE APD opened at $271.05 on Monday. 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 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $279.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $301.36. The firm has a market cap of $60.32 billion, a PE ratio of 15.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 prior year, the firm earned $2.85 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

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.