Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Insider Francesco Maione Sells 2,016 Shares

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,173,204. The trade was a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of APD traded down $2.43 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $308.13. The company had a trading volume of 528,758 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,873,077. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $309.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $302.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $216.30 and a 52-week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued 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 return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. 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 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 41.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $339.94.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in APD. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $555,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 203 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 1,592 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,480 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,334,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares during the period. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 674 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $201,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.