Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Reduces Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ trimmed its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 64.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 45,745 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 82,400 shares during the quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $11,804,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 167.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,921,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,894,973,000 after buying an additional 4,330,471 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 2,931.0% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,796,531 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $444,352,000 after purchasing an additional 1,737,260 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 127.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,792,470 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $720,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564,169 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 50.6% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,547,202 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $374,841,000 after purchasing an additional 520,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scharf Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 1st quarter worth $87,173,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $310.00 to $280.00 in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $275.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.40.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE:APD opened at $287.98 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $274.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $259.67. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.24 and a 12 month high of $296.00. The company has a market capitalization of $64.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.99, a PEG ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.