Proficio Capital Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 848 Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 848 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,494 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,914,000 after purchasing an additional 6,952 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 374,442 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $111,488,000 after buying an additional 139,223 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,269,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,074,000 after acquiring an additional 4,916 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1,205.1% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 38,423 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $11,440,000 after acquiring an additional 35,479 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $341.47.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.6 %

APD opened at $295.04 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $65.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.13, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company’s 50 day moving average is $312.51 and its 200-day moving average is $308.91. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $227.53 and a 1-year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.58%.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total transaction of $410,644.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,008,604.84. The trade was a 28.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,811.50. The trade was a 45.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.