Trilogy Capital Inc. Takes Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Trilogy Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 10,837 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,625,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 167.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,921,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,894,973,000 after buying an additional 4,330,471 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,302,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,502,717,000 after acquiring an additional 235,037 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $852,288,000. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,931,619 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $528,877,000 after purchasing an additional 66,906 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,508,625 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $413,078,000 after purchasing an additional 168,959 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $258.05 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $259.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $251.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.84. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.24 and a fifty-two week high of $307.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.49.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 20.32% and a return on equity of 16.56%. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.74 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 12th. Investors of record on Monday, July 1st will be given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 1st. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APD has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho lowered their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $295.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $287.29.

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.