Root Financial Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 922 Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 922 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $267,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 22.3% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 203 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,343 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.1% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 71,202 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $21,200,000 after acquiring an additional 2,131 shares during the period. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Finally, Good Life Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 34.5% in the 3rd quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 2,872 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $855,000 after purchasing an additional 737 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. Redburn Atlantic raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded 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 report on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $339.94.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total value of $616,896.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the business’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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,749 shares of company stock worth $3,030,032 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of APD opened at $316.74 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $308.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $302.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.47 billion, a PE ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $220.26 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current 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 represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis 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 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.