Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Sells 1,230 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc decreased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,766 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,230 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $8,923,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 203 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter worth $105,000. CX Institutional raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,343 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 71,202 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $21,200,000 after acquiring an additional 2,131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,186 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,246,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

NYSE:APD opened at $309.50 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $68.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.97, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $216.30 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $309.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $302.26.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.11%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. This trade represents a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of 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, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.