Voya Investment Management LLC Raises Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 710.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 440,034 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 385,739 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC owned 0.20% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $127,627,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $505,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $588,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $282,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 719 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD traded up $2.51 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $269.62. The company had a trading volume of 916,116 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,482,945. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $287.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $305.21. The stock has a market cap of $59.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $228.81 and a twelve month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 EPS 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on APD. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays cut their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $355.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of America downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $282.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $332.18.

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.