Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,834,077 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 19,413 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 0.82% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $531,956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Generali Investments Management Co LLC bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded 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. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup cut their target price 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, Barclays raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $341.47.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $292.34 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 50 day moving average is $311.68 and its 200-day moving average is $309.19. 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 $65.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.98, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a boost 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 2.45%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 41.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total value of $993,565.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604 in the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by 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.