SBI Securities Co. Ltd. Buys New Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on APD shares. UBS Group increased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $343.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 1.9 %

APD opened at $316.76 on Friday. 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 has a 50-day moving average of $311.63 and a 200-day moving average of $306.98. 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 company has a market capitalization of $70.47 billion, a PE ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. Equities research 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a positive change 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.58%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The sale 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 shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares in the company, valued at $221,811.50. This trade represents a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.