Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 17,653 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 509 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,556,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 151.3% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 24,881 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,028,000 after buying an additional 14,981 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 67,507 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $16,355,000 after buying an additional 2,321 shares in the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,625,000. FORA Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 13.0% during the first quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 33,823 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,194,000 after purchasing an additional 3,881 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Markets Americas LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 140.1% in the first quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 39,164 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $9,488,000 after purchasing an additional 22,850 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.5 %

APD opened at $290.00 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $279.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $262.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $212.24 and a one year high of $302.03.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 16.53%. Equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 63.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on APD shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $310.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $275.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.50.

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.