Cornerstone Advisors LLC Increases Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Cornerstone Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 39.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 6,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the period. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,995,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $861,722,000 after buying an additional 2,884,581 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 2,931.0% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,796,531 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $444,352,000 after acquiring an additional 1,737,260 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 127.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,792,470 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $720,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564,169 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 240.7% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,023,433 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $304,717,000 after purchasing an additional 723,019 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Markets Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 318.7% during the third quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 948,723 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $282,473,000 after purchasing an additional 722,132 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Vertical Research upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. UBS Group upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $331.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE APD opened at $328.69 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.07 billion, a PE ratio of 19.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.24 and a 12 month high of $332.42. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $309.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $282.08.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.21%.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.