Mission Wealth Management LP Raises Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Mission Wealth Management LP raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 16.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,808 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. Mission Wealth Management LP’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on APD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group raised their target price on 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. Citigroup raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $343.53.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other 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 directly owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,173,204. The trade was a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,911 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,897 in the last ninety days. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 2.1 %

APD stock opened at $311.70 on Thursday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.53 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $310.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $306.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $69.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. As a group, analysts forecast 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 business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. 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 2.30%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 41.58%.

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.