Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Purchases 235,083 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 116.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 437,081 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 235,083 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned 0.20% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $126,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Generali Investments Management Co LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD stock traded down $3.15 on Wednesday, reaching $264.47. The stock had a trading volume of 1,379,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,482,587. The stock has a market cap of $58.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.69 and a 1 year high of $341.14. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $281.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $302.78.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.85 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on APD shares. Barclays dropped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. StockNews.com cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued 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 $330.38.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,604.84. This represents a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. This trade represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.