Silver Coast Investments LLC Buys 251 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Silver Coast Investments LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 25.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,232 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 251 shares during the quarter. Silver Coast Investments LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $357,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,494 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,914,000 after acquiring an additional 6,952 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% in 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 purchasing an additional 139,223 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $7,269,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,074,000 after buying an additional 4,916 shares during the period. Finally, Jensen Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 65.0% during the third quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,170 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,921,000 after buying an additional 5,190 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $316.55 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $310.00 and its 200 day moving average is $306.15. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $227.53 and a 1-year high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $70.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.38, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly 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 net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.58%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total transaction of $410,644.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,008,604.84. This represents a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the 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 sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 14,911 shares of company stock worth $4,660,897. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $343.53.

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.