Palouse Capital Management Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Palouse Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,332 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 148 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals makes up 2.4% of Palouse Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Palouse Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $3,577,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,494 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,914,000 after purchasing an additional 6,952 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 374,442 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $111,488,000 after buying an additional 139,223 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,269,000. Forsta AP Fonden boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 13.4% during the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 45,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $13,607,000 after buying an additional 5,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,074,000 after buying an additional 4,916 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,749 shares of company stock worth $3,030,032. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.5 %

APD opened at $316.74 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $308.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $303.10. The company has a market capitalization of $70.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.39, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $220.26 and a 52 week high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. Analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APD has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.94.

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.