Xponance Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,886 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.'s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $9,538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,448,570,000 after purchasing an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $885,371,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,088,449 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $605,734,000 after purchasing an additional 30,888 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $555,967,000 after purchasing an additional 70,759 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $486,343,000 after purchasing an additional 19,209 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE APD traded down $1.58 on Friday, reaching $291.35. 2,875,078 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,415,639. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $227.53 and a 12 month high of $341.14. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $313.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $308.45. The company has a market cap of $64.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. 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 (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on APD. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded 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 note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $342.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $462,240.54. The trade was a 50.64 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total transaction of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604. Company 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.