Woodline Partners LP Invests $3.87 Million in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 13,351 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $3,872,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,485,176 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $6,231,560,000 after acquiring an additional 207,404 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 6,663,154 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,932,581,000 after acquiring an additional 64,960 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 129.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,429,147 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,574,670,000 after acquiring an additional 3,062,157 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,931,661 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,430,354,000 after acquiring an additional 57,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mantle Ridge LP bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,191,344,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total transaction of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 719 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $221,811.50. This trade represents a 45.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded up $3.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $276.84. 372,691 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,442,004. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $272.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $297.77. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.69 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The stock has a market cap of $61.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

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

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is currently 104.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Thursday. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $290.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $331.00.

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.