Bank of Marin Purchases Shares of 1,308 Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Bank of Marin purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,308 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $379,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. 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, Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $342.65.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total value of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have 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 Stock Down 1.4 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $291.56 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.87 billion, a PE ratio of 16.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $227.53 and a 12 month high of $341.14. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $312.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $308.34. 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 (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts anticipate 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 41.58%.

Air Products and Chemicals 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.