Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,670 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $795,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.2% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,062,859 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $790,371,000 after purchasing an additional 122,676 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $861,722,000 after acquiring an additional 2,884,581 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,564,169 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,043,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $608,312,000 after acquiring an additional 33,313 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 5,140 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on APD. StockNews.com raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of APD opened at $334.07 on Tuesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.24 and a fifty-two week high of $336.42. The company’s fifty day moving average is $311.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $283.75. The firm has a market cap of $74.29 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.21%.

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.