Fred Alger Management LLC Increases Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Fred Alger Management LLC increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 26,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 776 shares during the quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $7,831,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,062,859 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $790,371,000 after purchasing an additional 122,676 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $861,722,000 after buying an additional 2,884,581 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 127.3% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,564,169 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,043,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $608,312,000 after acquiring an additional 33,313 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,034,818 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $525,085,000 after acquiring an additional 5,140 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $334.33 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $212.24 and a twelve month high of $336.42. 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 company has a market cap of $74.35 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s 50 day moving average is $315.16 and its 200 day moving average is $285.87.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on APD. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $323.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $331.53.

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.