Vestcor Inc Sells 454 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Vestcor Inc lowered its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,999 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 454 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in APD. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 7,088 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter worth $3,234,000. Intellectus Partners LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 22.4% during the third quarter. Intellectus Partners LLC now owns 1,665 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $496,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 7.5% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 38,712 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $11,526,000 after purchasing an additional 2,686 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth $200,000. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on APD. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $342.65.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total value of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,173,204. The trade was a 34.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares in the company, valued at $221,811.50. This trade represents a 45.03 % 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. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $291.82 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $312.54 and its 200 day moving average is $307.90. The stock has a market cap of $64.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $227.53 and a 52-week 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.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. Sell-side analysts predict 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 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.