Lee Danner & Bass Inc. Takes Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% during the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $291.35 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $313.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $308.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a market capitalization of $64.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.92, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.53 and a 12-month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. Sell-side analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,811.50. The trade was a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. This represents a 28.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.