6,608 Shares in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Acquired by Allstate Corp

Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 6,608 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,917,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of APD. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 1,469 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $437,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.2% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 82,515 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,568,000 after purchasing an additional 2,587 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,041,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $310,000,000 after purchasing an additional 9,260 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 9,640 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,870,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 26,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $7,831,000 after buying an additional 776 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:APD opened at $292.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $311.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $309.19. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.53 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced 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%. Sell-side analysts expect 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. 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 is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.58%.

Insider Activity

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total value of $616,896.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. The trade was a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lowered 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. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $341.47.

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.