Sapient Capital LLC Grows Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Sapient Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 21.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,598 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 279 shares during the quarter. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in 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. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 88.7% in the 3rd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,749 shares of company stock worth $3,030,032. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.3 %

APD opened at $309.50 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $309.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $302.26. The company has a market capitalization of $68.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.97, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $216.30 and a 52 week high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

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%. Analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 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 issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is an increase 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 2.31%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on APD. Citigroup raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $339.94.

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.