Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. Has $1.59 Million Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the quarter. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,448,570,000 after acquiring an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $861,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,884,581 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,043,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $608,312,000 after purchasing an additional 33,313 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in 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 buying an additional 70,759 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $486,343,000 after buying an additional 19,209 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.3 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $309.50 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $216.30 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $309.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $302.26. The firm has a market cap of $68.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share 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%. As a group, analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 41.11%.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total value of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was 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 $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,749 shares of company stock worth $3,030,032. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on APD shares. UBS Group upped 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Redburn Atlantic raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, 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 objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $339.94.

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.