Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Purchased by Community Bank N.A.

Community Bank N.A. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,322 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the quarter. Community Bank N.A.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $2,704,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of APD. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 approximately $221,811.50. This trade represents a 45.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $462,240.54. This trade represents a 50.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on APD. StockNews.com cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” 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 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $291.35 on Friday. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $313.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $308.45. 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 market cap of $64.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.58%.

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.