Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lessened its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 30.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 69,101 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 30,707 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $20,042,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Widmann Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,935 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $851,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $715,000. Guardian Capital LP lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Guardian Capital LP now owns 47,284 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $13,714,000 after acquiring an additional 538 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,000. Finally, Utah Retirement Systems increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 36,824 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $10,680,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. This trade represents a 28.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604 in the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD traded down $4.36 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $267.85. The company had a trading volume of 1,184,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,479,300. 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 stock's fifty day moving average price is $282.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $303.02. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.69 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on APD shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $330.38.

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.