Shell Asset Management Co. Lowers Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Shell Asset Management Co. trimmed its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 20.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,169 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 573 shares during the quarter. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $629,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,397,210 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $695,287,000 after purchasing an additional 34,676 shares in the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 19,296 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,597,000 after acquiring an additional 2,137 shares in the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth about $26,852,000. Polar Capital Holdings Plc raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 11,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,248,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadcap Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,655 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $480,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the company’s 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,604.84. This represents a 28.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,751 shares of company stock valued at $1,812,572 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on APD. Bank of America lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company cut 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. Barclays cut their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned 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.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $330.38.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 1.6%

APD opened at $278.78 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $62.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. 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 50 day moving average is $275.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $299.95. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.69 and a 52 week high of $341.14.

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

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.