Geneos Wealth Management Inc. Purchases 923 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Key Points

• Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 5.1% during the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to 19,026 shares valued at approximately $5.6 million.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Air Products and Chemicals, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $334.75 based on recent updates from various research firms.
• Air Products and Chemicals announced a quarterly dividend of $1.79 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 2.43% and a high payout ratio of 104.07%.

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 5.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,026 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 923 shares during the quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc.'s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,611,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in APD. Dodge & Cox grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 6,663,154 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,932,581,000 after purchasing 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% in the fourth 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 purchasing 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% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,931,661 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,430,354,000 after purchasing an additional 57,314 shares in the last quarter. Mantle Ridge LP acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at $1,191,344,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.6% in 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 buying an additional 156,419 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays cut their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. 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 report on Monday, June 30th. UBS Group upped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $290.00 target price for the company. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $334.75.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of NYSE APD traded down $6.00 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $281.88. 1,072,180 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 934,039. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market cap of $62.73 billion, a PE ratio of 40.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.81. The company's fifty day moving average is $285.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $290.47. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.69 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $3.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.11% and a net margin of 12.86%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.20 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is presently 104.07%.

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.