125 Shares in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Acquired by Align Wealth Management LLC

Align Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD – Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 125 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 1,180 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,010,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 22.3% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 5,890 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,472,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 105,875 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,459,000 after purchasing an additional 4,470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 17.1% during the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 755 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $188,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. 82.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Sean D. Major sold 485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.00, for a total transaction of $151,805.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,468,075. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on APD shares. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $292.00 to $340.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 3rd. Vertical Research raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $312.75.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD opened at $274.74 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $294.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $281.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.01 billion, a PE ratio of 26.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $218.88 and a 52-week high of $328.56.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 2nd. The basic materials company reported $2.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.73 by ($0.09). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 17.61% and a return on equity of 16.45%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.52 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 11.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.75 per share. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 31st. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.59%.

Air Products and Chemicals Profile

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Air Products & Chemicals, Inc engages in the manufacture and distribution of atmospheric gases. It operates through the following segments: Industrial Gases-Americas, Industrial Gases-EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), Industrial Gases-Asia, Industrial Gases-Global, and Corporate & Other. The Industrial Gases-America, EMEA, and Asia segment markets and produces atmospheric gases, such as oxygen, nitrogen, argon, and rare gases, process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, syngas, and specialty gases and equipment for the production and processing of gases, such as air separation units and non-cryogenic generators.