Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Stock Holdings Boosted by Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.

Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 30.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 6,222 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,463 shares during the quarter. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,703,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Legacy Bridge LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Argus cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $245.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $328.00 to $241.00 in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $276.36.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE APD traded down $0.58 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $233.78. 1,175,212 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,737,782. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.81. The company has a market cap of $51.97 billion, a PE ratio of 22.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $236.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $256.79. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.24 and a 1-year high of $307.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.00 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.84% and a net margin of 18.82%. The business’s revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.64 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.56%.

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.