Flputnam Investment Management Co. Sells 4,076 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. reduced its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 19.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 16,680 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,076 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,838,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. First American Bank boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. First American Bank now owns 26,048 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $7,555,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,052 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 18,508 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,368,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,903 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,872,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $71,307,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on APD shares. 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. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $343.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 1.3 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $316.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $310.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $305.95. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $227.53 and a 1-year high of $341.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.58%.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total transaction of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $462,240.54. This represents a 50.64 % decrease in their position. 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 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.