Plancorp LLC Boosts Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Plancorp LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 19.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,337 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Plancorp LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $388,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned 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 company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $342.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,811.50. This trade represents a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $462,240.54. The trade was a 50.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.5 %

APD stock opened at $291.35 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.53 and a twelve month 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 firm has a market cap of $64.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50 day moving average of $313.19 and a 200 day moving average of $308.45.

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

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

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

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.