Ramsay Stattman Vela & Price Inc. Purchases 646 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Ramsay Stattman Vela & Price Inc. lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,793 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the period. Ramsay Stattman Vela & Price Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,581,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 88.7% in the 3rd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $316.74 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $220.26 and a 1 year high of $341.14. The firm has a market cap 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 50 day simple moving average of $308.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $303.65.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced 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%. 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a 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 presently 41.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APD has been the subject of a number of research reports. BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. UBS Group increased their price target 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. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $339.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,749 shares of company stock valued at $3,030,032. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.