Tremblant Capital Group Increases Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Tremblant Capital Group increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 49.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,503 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,148 shares during the period. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for about 0.3% of Tremblant Capital Group’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Tremblant Capital Group’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $3,226,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 151.3% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 24,881 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,028,000 after purchasing an additional 14,981 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% in the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 67,507 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $16,355,000 after purchasing an additional 2,321 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 351,506 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $96,242,000 after purchasing an additional 5,502 shares in the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter worth about $2,625,000. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC now owns 126,928 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,753,000 after purchasing an additional 9,663 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $276.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $310.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $297.40.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $291.99 on Tuesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.24 and a 12 month high of $296.00. The stock has a market cap of $64.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.35, a PEG ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $274.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $260.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.16. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 21.24%. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.90%.

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.