Melissa N. Schaeffer Sells 3,233 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Stock

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total value of $993,565.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD traded up $1.58 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $316.74. 1,171,412 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,907,431. The company has a market capitalization of $70.44 billion, a PE ratio of 18.39, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $308.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $303.10. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $220.26 and a one year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current year.

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Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.11%.

Institutional Trading of Air Products and Chemicals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $5,027,000. Wahed Invest LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 5,627 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,622,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the period. Blue Rock Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $580,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth $7,983,000. Finally, Widmann Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,935 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $851,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on APD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $339.94.

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.