McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC Invests $74,000 in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)

McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD – Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 241 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of APD. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 6.9% in the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 1,180 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter worth $1,010,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 22.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 5,890 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,472,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.4% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 105,875 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,459,000 after purchasing an additional 4,470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 17.1% during the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 755 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $188,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.74% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 1.8 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $274.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.93. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $294.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $281.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.01 billion, a PE ratio of 26.96, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.84. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $218.88 and a 52 week high of $328.56.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 2nd. The basic materials company reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.73 by ($0.09). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 17.61% and a return on equity of 16.45%. The firm had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 11.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 8th. Investors of record on Monday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 31st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 63.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $292.00 to $340.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $394.00 to $386.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $312.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 485 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.00, for a total transaction of $151,805.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,468,075. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Company Profile

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Air Products & Chemicals, Inc engages in the manufacture and distribution of atmospheric gases. It operates through the following segments: Industrial Gases-Americas, Industrial Gases-EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), Industrial Gases-Asia, Industrial Gases-Global, and Corporate & Other. The Industrial Gases-America, EMEA, and Asia segment markets and produces atmospheric gases, such as oxygen, nitrogen, argon, and rare gases, process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, syngas, and specialty gases and equipment for the production and processing of gases, such as air separation units and non-cryogenic generators.