Nixon Peabody Trust Co. Buys 3,711 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 277.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,050 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,711 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,383,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Sachetta LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 257.6% in the fourth quarter. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on APD. UBS Group cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $328.00 to $241.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $250.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Argus downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $245.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $273.77.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of APD stock traded up $1.46 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $264.46. The company had a trading volume of 1,070,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,714,799. The firm has a market cap of $58.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.80. 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 $242.53 and a 200 day moving average of $251.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.31.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.70 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 20.32% and a return on equity of 16.56%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.3 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.68%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.