Welch & Forbes LLC Lowers Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Welch & Forbes LLC trimmed its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,782 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 101 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $10,892,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $376,000. Eos Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Eos Management L.P. now owns 27,558 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,545,000 after acquiring an additional 5,727 shares during the last quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA now owns 65,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,850,000 after acquiring an additional 2,285 shares in the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth about $1,177,000. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth about $501,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on APD shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $250.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. TheStreet cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup dropped 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $277.43.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.4 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded up $1.05 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $248.65. The company had a trading volume of 1,094,280 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,722,390. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $238.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $253.28. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.24 and a 1-year high of $307.71. The stock has a market cap of $55.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.80.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.70 by $0.15. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 20.32%. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.74 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.