Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA Invests $582,000 in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,975 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $582,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in APD. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $945,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,637 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,066,000 after acquiring an additional 4,970 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 9,520 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,761,000 after acquiring an additional 739 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $366,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leavell Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,780 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,386,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $290.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $332.41.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 1.2%

APD stock traded down $3.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $280.02. 932,938 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,428,397. The stock has a market cap of $62.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. 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's 50 day moving average price is $271.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $294.43.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.85 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals'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 fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's payout ratio is 104.07%.

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.