Sepio Capital LP Cuts Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Sepio Capital LP lessened its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 17,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 993 shares during the period. Sepio Capital LP’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,149,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,485,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,231,560,000 after buying an additional 207,404 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,931,661 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,430,354,000 after purchasing an additional 57,314 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $919,721,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $885,371,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,088,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $605,734,000 after purchasing an additional 30,888 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of 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. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $340.88.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total transaction of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 719 shares in the company, valued at $221,811.50. This trade represents a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total transaction of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. This trade represents a 28.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $263.35 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.59 billion, a PE ratio of 15.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.53 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $308.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $309.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm 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 is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.72%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.58%.

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.