Xponance Inc. Increases Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Xponance Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.5% during the 4th 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 quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $9,538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its holdings in 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 valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD opened at $291.56 on Wednesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.53 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $312.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $308.34. The company has a market cap of $64.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.93, a PEG 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) last announced its 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. On average, research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 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 paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on APD. StockNews.com cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $342.65.

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.