Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. Trims Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lowered its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 15.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,065 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 3,204 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,950,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on APD. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of APD traded down $4.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $309.93. The stock had a trading volume of 593,488 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,725,751. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $308.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $304.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $227.10 and a 1-year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at $462,240.54. The trade was a 50.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,604.84. The trade was a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 14,911 shares of company stock worth $4,660,897. Insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

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.