The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Lowers Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 140,147 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,091 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $41,727,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter valued at about $281,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.5% during the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 5,731 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter worth about $124,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter worth about $15,910,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 872.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 119,907 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,050,000 after purchasing an additional 107,579 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $375.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $295.00 to $364.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $323.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $331.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:APD opened at $333.22 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $314.23 and a 200-day moving average of $285.02. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $212.24 and a 52 week high of $336.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.21%.

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.