Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Covenant Asset Management LLC

Covenant Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,130 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 48 shares during the period. Covenant Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,488,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $861,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,884,581 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the 3rd 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 grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during 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 purchasing an additional 70,759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 19,209 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the 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 directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This trade represents a 34.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value 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 trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,749 shares of company stock valued at $3,030,032 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on APD shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup increased their price objective 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. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD opened at $316.74 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $308.42 and its 200-day moving average is $302.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. 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 12-month low of $220.26 and a 12-month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio 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.