Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. Sells 6,944 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lessened its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 50,488 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 6,944 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $14,642,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of APD. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,485,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,231,560,000 after buying an additional 207,404 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,931,661 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,430,354,000 after acquiring an additional 57,314 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at $919,721,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at $885,371,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,315,245 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $671,514,000 after purchasing an additional 98,346 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total value of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total value of $410,644.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,604.84. The trade was a 28.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 over the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD opened at $265.45 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $59.06 billion, a PE ratio of 15.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.89. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $227.53 and a 52-week high of $341.14. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $295.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $307.20. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APD has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $373.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $282.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $332.18.

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.