Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc.

Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 5.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,722 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 204 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of APD. Mantle Ridge LP acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $1,191,344,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $919,721,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 129.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,429,147 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,574,670,000 after acquiring an additional 3,062,157 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $885,371,000. Finally, Capital International Investors acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $436,636,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on APD. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $290.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $331.00.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.7%

APD opened at $281.78 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $270.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $295.25. The company has a market cap of $62.71 billion, a PE ratio of 16.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.86. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.69 and a 1 year 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, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.14). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. The business had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.85 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 104.07%.

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.