Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 140,147 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,091 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.06% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $41,727,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 1st quarter worth about $281,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 5,731 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 1st quarter valued at about $124,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 1st quarter valued at about $15,910,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 872.6% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 119,907 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,050,000 after purchasing an additional 107,579 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $295.00 to $364.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Vertical Research upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $331.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $333.22 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $314.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $285.02. The stock has a market cap of $74.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.24 and a 1 year high of $336.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.52.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.21%.

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.