Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Sells 77 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,636 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 77 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,635,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on APD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD opened at $291.35 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $64.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $313.19 and a 200 day moving average of $308.45. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.53 and a twelve month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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 business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 41.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total transaction 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. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,842,604. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.