Valley National Advisers Inc. Sells 1,401 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Valley National Advisers Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 14.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,112 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 1,401 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc.'s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $2,392,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $945,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. Nwam LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Nwam LLC now owns 1,230 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $357,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,903 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,872,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,150 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $282.68 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $62.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.09, a P/E/G ratio of 5.42 and a beta of 0.86. 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 fifty day moving average price of $274.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $290.78. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 12.76% and a return on equity of 15.48%. The business's revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.85 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is presently 104.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 target price for the company. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $282.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $332.41.

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.

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