Spire Wealth Management Cuts Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Spire Wealth Management lessened its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 17.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,239 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 478 shares during the quarter. Spire Wealth Management’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $578,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 62.3% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,230,051 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,720,704,000 after purchasing an additional 4,309,040 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at $852,288,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,034,818 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $525,085,000 after acquiring an additional 5,140 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 50.6% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,547,202 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $374,841,000 after purchasing an additional 520,179 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,508,625 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $413,078,000 after purchasing an additional 168,959 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on APD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $291.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $310.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $297.40.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $278.85 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $267.41 and its 200 day moving average is $254.73. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.24 and a 1 year high of $307.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 16.53%. On average, research analysts predict 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors 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 yield of 2.54%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.90%.

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.