Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 741,321 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,655,092 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 741,321 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 1.64% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $1,170,872,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,448,570,000 after buying an additional 88,806 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,062,859 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $790,371,000 after acquiring an additional 122,676 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $861,722,000 after acquiring an additional 2,884,581 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 127.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,792,470 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $720,597,000 after acquiring an additional 1,564,169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,043,099 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $608,312,000 after purchasing an additional 33,313 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on APD. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $323.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $330.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $295.00 to $364.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $331.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.5 %

APD stock traded up $1.41 during trading on Friday, hitting $312.30. 913,394 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,592,874. The stock has a market cap of $69.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.24 and a 1 year high of $337.00. The firm's 50 day moving average is $320.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $289.41.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.21%.

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.