Meriwether Wealth & Planning LLC Makes New $376,000 Investment in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Meriwether Wealth & Planning LLC purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,295 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $376,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fiera Capital Corp bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at $908,000. Rovin Capital UT ADV acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at $239,000. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 12.6% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,985 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $591,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 11.2% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 53,174 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,832,000 after buying an additional 5,374 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $316.76 on Monday. The firm has a market cap 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.53 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $311.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $307.43.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. 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 yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. 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. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $343.53.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals 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. The trade was a 45.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604 in the last three months. Company 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.