GWN Securities Inc. Invests $328,000 in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

GWN Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,131 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $328,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at $200,000. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 31.9% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 156,833 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $46,695,000 after buying an additional 37,964 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 32,297 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,616,000 after buying an additional 1,177 shares during the period. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 8.4% in the third quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 8,161 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,430,000 after buying an additional 632 shares during the period. Finally, Drive Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at $207,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on APD. Barclays raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 1.4 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $295.96 on Tuesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.53 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The stock has a market cap of $65.84 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $312.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $308.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. Research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is presently 41.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at $462,240.54. The trade was a 50.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 over the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals 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.