Oak Thistle LLC Has $280,000 Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Key Points

• Oak Thistle LLC significantly reduced its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. by 56.8%, holding 950 shares worth $280,000 after selling 1,247 shares in the 1st quarter.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Air Products and Chemicals, with target prices raised by multiple firms, including Wells Fargo from $320 to $345.
• The company will pay a quarterly dividend of $1.79 per share on November 10th, with a dividend yield of 2.39% based on an annualized payout of $7.16.

Oak Thistle LLC cut its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 56.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 950 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 1,247 shares during the quarter. Oak Thistle LLC's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $280,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in 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 valued at $1,932,581,000 after acquiring an additional 64,960 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 129.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,429,147 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,574,670,000 after purchasing an additional 3,062,157 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,931,661 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,430,354,000 after purchasing an additional 57,314 shares in the last quarter. Mantle Ridge LP bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,191,344,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,583,156 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,039,259,000 after purchasing an additional 156,419 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on APD. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $334.75.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE APD traded down $1.32 on Tuesday, hitting $294.25. 136,296 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,338,611. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.69 and a twelve month high of $341.14. The company's 50 day moving average price is $283.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $290.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.74 and a beta of 0.85.

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). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 12.76% and a return on equity of 15.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.85 EPS. The firm's revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is 104.07%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.