Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Principal Street Partners LLC

Principal Street Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 49.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,107 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 1,068 shares during the quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $321,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mantle Ridge LP purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,191,344,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $919,721,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 129.4% in the 4th 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 period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $885,371,000. Finally, Capital International Investors purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $436,636,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on APD shares. Wall Street Zen cut Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $330.38.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

APD traded up $0.79 during trading on Friday, hitting $270.03. 527,583 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,445,421. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.68, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.69 and a 1-year high of $341.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $273.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $298.85. 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 (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. The company's quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.85 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders 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 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 104.07%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 719 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $221,811.50. The trade was a 45.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.