Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co Sells 839 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co decreased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 20,288 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 839 shares during the quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,884,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at about $885,371,000. Sachem Head Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter worth about $163,013,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $159,886,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $71,307,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% in the 4th 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE APD opened at $295.40 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $227.53 and a 12 month high of $341.14. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $312.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $308.82. The stock has a market cap of $65.72 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on APD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, 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 report on Friday, January 31st. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $341.47.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares in the company, valued at $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total transaction of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. This represents a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.