ING Groep NV Sells 995,039 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

ING Groep NV lessened its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 97.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 28,394 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 995,039 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $8,235,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,448,570,000 after acquiring an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $555,967,000 after acquiring an additional 70,759 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $486,343,000 after acquiring an additional 19,209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,249,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $371,920,000 after acquiring an additional 14,077 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

NYSE APD opened at $310.02 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $308.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $304.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.00, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.10 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.11%.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,604.84. The trade was a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,911 shares of company stock worth $4,660,897 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on APD. BNP Paribas raised Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $339.94.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.