Simmons Bank Sells 79 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Simmons Bank lowered its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,465 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 79 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,448,570,000 after buying an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,088,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $605,734,000 after acquiring an additional 30,888 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $555,967,000 after purchasing an additional 70,759 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $486,343,000 after purchasing an additional 19,209 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,249,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $371,920,000 after purchasing an additional 14,077 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total transaction of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $462,240.54. This represents a 50.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,911 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,897 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD opened at $317.51 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $70.64 billion, a PE ratio of 18.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $227.53 and a 52-week high of $341.14. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $308.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $305.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) 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, equities analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.94.

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.