Evergreen Capital Management LLC Has $4.61 Million Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,876 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 849 shares during the quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,605,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,494 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,914,000 after purchasing an additional 6,952 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% in 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 period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,269,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,074,000 after acquiring an additional 4,916 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1,205.1% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 38,423 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $11,440,000 after acquiring an additional 35,479 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,604.84. This represents a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 represents a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 in the last ninety days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APD has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $355.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $370.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $332.18.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $261.47 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.76 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The company has a market capitalization of $58.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.18, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $294.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $306.88.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. On average, analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.74%. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 41.58%.

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.