Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Holdings Reduced by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp decreased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 733,912 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 30,577 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.33% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $212,864,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 88.7% in the third quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Bank of America cut 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock traded up $1.58 during trading 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 quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $220.26 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $308.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $303.37.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. On average, equities analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders 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 is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Air Products and Chemicals's payout ratio is currently 41.11%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the completion of 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 represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $616,896.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,834 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This trade represents a 34.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,749 shares of company stock valued at $3,030,032 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

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.