Ritholtz Wealth Management Buys 364 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 33.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,461 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in APD. Sachetta LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Security National Bank bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 700.0% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 128 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of APD opened at $273.50 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.68, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.81. 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 company has a 50-day moving average of $268.16 and a 200 day moving average of $255.69.

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

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 63.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered 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. Barclays upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One investment 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.40.

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.