Apollon Wealth Management LLC Raises Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 25.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,211 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,703 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,371,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,485,176 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $6,231,560,000 after purchasing an additional 207,404 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 6,663,154 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,932,581,000 after buying an additional 64,960 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew 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 buying an additional 3,062,157 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew 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 buying an additional 57,314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mantle Ridge LP bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,191,344,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE APD traded up $1.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $294.70. 460,264 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,355,867. 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 company has a market cap of $65.58 billion, a PE ratio of 42.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.85. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $280.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $290.18. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.69 and a 52 week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last announced its 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). The company 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 12.76% and a return on equity of 15.48%. The firm's revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.85 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho upped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $331.53.

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.