Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank cut its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 694,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 19,800 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.31% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $190,209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of APD. Dover Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% in the third quarter. Dover Advisors LLC now owns 1,894 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $540,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.4% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,566 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 40.4% during the 3rd quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 132 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $290,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,636 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $996,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded up $2.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $245.87. 1,474,749 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,738,766. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.80. The business’s 50-day moving average is $237.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $254.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.49. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.24 and a 12 month high of $307.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 20.32%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.74 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Cowen raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $328.00 to $241.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $277.43.

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.