L & S Advisors Inc Trims Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

L & S Advisors Inc lowered its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,265 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 273 shares during the period. L & S Advisors Inc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $6,168,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allianz SE acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $225,000. Intrust Bank NA grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 2,910 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $844,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Allstate Corp purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,917,000. DnB Asset Management AS lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 43,428 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $12,596,000 after buying an additional 2,035 shares during the period. Finally, Level Four Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,909 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $554,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $292.34 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $227.53 and a 1 year high of $341.14. The company has a market capitalization of $65.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $311.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $309.19. 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 (NYSE:APD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict 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 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. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 41.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note 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. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded 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 research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded 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 note on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $341.47.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.