Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Decreases Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS reduced its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 60.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,886 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 28,529 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of APD. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 2,884,581 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 240.7% during the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,023,433 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $304,717,000 after purchasing an additional 723,019 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 318.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 948,723 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $282,473,000 after purchasing an additional 722,132 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1,685.4% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 764,489 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $249,698,000 after acquiring an additional 721,671 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,957.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 718,075 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,138,000,000 after acquiring an additional 715,686 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Victoria Brifo sold 2,362 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.82, for a total transaction of $745,966.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,172,411.90. The trade was a 19.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,911 shares of company stock worth $4,660,897 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on APD. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $330.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded down $4.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $310.02. 1,392,858 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,750,034. The company has a market cap of $68.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.00, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $308.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $304.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.10 and a 12-month 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

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

Air Products and Chemicals 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.