Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. Reduces Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. decreased its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,678 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 244 shares during the quarter. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,067,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. ING Groep NV increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 240.7% during the third quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,023,433 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $304,717,000 after buying an additional 723,019 shares during the period. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 318.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 948,723 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $282,473,000 after purchasing an additional 722,132 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,685.4% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 764,489 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $249,698,000 after purchasing an additional 721,671 shares during the period. Sachem Head Capital Management LP bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth $163,013,000. Finally, TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth about $159,886,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $339.94.

Insider Activity

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 28.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,911 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,897 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

APD stock opened at $309.17 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $308.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $305.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.53 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 41.11%.

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.