Perpetual Ltd Sells 1,103 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Perpetual Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 115,172 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 1,103 shares during the quarter. Perpetual Ltd owned 0.05% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $33,967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APD. PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 17.3% during the first quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 1,468 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $433,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Stockton raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.6% during the first quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 2,184 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $644,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Western Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 4,387 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,294,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 28.0% during the 1st quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 10,912 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,218,000 after purchasing an additional 2,389 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on APD shares. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of 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. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $332.41.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD traded down $0.32 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $282.68. The stock had a trading volume of 2,433,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,392,701. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $274.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $291.29. The firm has a market cap of $62.91 billion, a PE ratio of 41.09, a P/E/G ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.86. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $243.69 and a one year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $2.92 billion during 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%. Air Products and Chemicals's quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.85 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's payout ratio is presently 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.