VSM Wealth Advisory LLC Takes $120,000 Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 413 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $120,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,448,570,000 after buying an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth $885,371,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,088,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $605,734,000 after acquiring an additional 30,888 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $555,967,000 after acquiring an additional 70,759 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $486,343,000 after purchasing an additional 19,209 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on APD shares. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group cut their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE:APD opened at $294.43 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $227.53 and a one year high of $341.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $313.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $308.24. The company has a market cap of $65.50 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

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 anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. 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 2.43%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 41.58%.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.