Bank of New York Mellon Corp Boosts Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,088,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,888 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $605,734,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,448,570,000 after buying an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $555,967,000 after acquiring an additional 70,759 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $486,343,000 after acquiring an additional 19,209 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,249,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $371,920,000 after purchasing an additional 14,077 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 25.2% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,165,733 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $350,139,000 after purchasing an additional 234,322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,282,177.60. This trade represents a 23.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 14,911 shares of company stock worth $4,660,897. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on APD shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $317.51 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $308.81 and its 200 day moving average is $305.34. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $227.53 and a 52 week high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a market cap of $70.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.44, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. 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 2.26%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.11%.

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.