Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Geneos Wealth Management Inc.

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 16.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,193 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 4,263 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc.'s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,803,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of APD. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.4% during the 3rd quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 132 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Artemis Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Argus downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $264.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 15th. UBS Group downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $328.00 to $241.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $240.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $280.29.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE APD traded up $2.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $239.69. The company had a trading volume of 890,819 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,759,799. The company has a market capitalization of $53.28 billion, a PE ratio of 22.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $236.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $260.41. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $212.24 and a twelve month high of $307.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.00 by ($0.18). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.84% and a net margin of 18.82%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.64 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals's quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 28th. Air Products and Chemicals's payout ratio is 67.56%.

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.

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