Amica Retiree Medical Trust Cuts Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Amica Retiree Medical Trust lessened its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,666 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 231 shares during the period. Amica Retiree Medical Trust’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $773,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $885,371,000. Sachem Head Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $163,013,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter worth approximately $159,886,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $71,307,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,485,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,231,560,000 after purchasing an additional 207,404 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.6 %

APD stock opened at $295.04 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.13, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. 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 1-year low of $227.53 and a 1-year high of $341.14. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $312.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $308.91.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted 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 net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. Research 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 company 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 an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.43%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is presently 41.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $341.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $616,896.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total value of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 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.