Praxair, Inc. (PX) Stake Decreased by Endurance Wealth Management Inc.

Endurance Wealth Management Inc. decreased its stake in Praxair, Inc. (NYSE:PX) by 1.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 876 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 15 shares during the period. Endurance Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Praxair were worth $116,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DnB Asset Management AS boosted its position in Praxair by 21.1% in the first quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 33,903 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,021,000 after buying an additional 5,900 shares in the last quarter. Benin Management CORP boosted its stake in Praxair by 33.9% in the first quarter. Benin Management CORP now owns 10,570 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,254,000 after buying an additional 2,675 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Praxair by 2.3% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 103,414 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $12,265,000 after buying an additional 2,315 shares during the period. Quantitative Systematic Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Praxair by 275.0% in the first quarter. Quantitative Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 16,696 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,980,000 after buying an additional 12,244 shares during the period. Finally, Rockland Trust Co. boosted its stake in Praxair by 3.1% in the first quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 73,514 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $8,719,000 after buying an additional 2,235 shares during the period. 84.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Praxair, Inc. (NYSE:PX) opened at 132.30 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $132.38 and a 200-day moving average of $126.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.78 and a beta of 0.93. Praxair, Inc. has a 1-year low of $114.43 and a 1-year high of $138.69.

Praxair (NYSE:PX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.03. Praxair had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 27.93%. The business had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.80 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.39 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Praxair, Inc. will post $5.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 8th will be given a $0.7875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 6th. This represents a $3.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. Praxair’s payout ratio is presently 58.88%.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on PX shares. Barclays PLC lifted their price target on shares of Praxair from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 1st. BidaskClub cut shares of Praxair from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 22nd. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Praxair from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 25th. Jefferies Group LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $162.00 price target on shares of Praxair in a report on Wednesday, June 21st. Finally, J P Morgan Chase & Co reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $156.00 price target (up previously from $130.00) on shares of Praxair in a report on Sunday, June 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Praxair currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $135.00.

Praxair Company Profile

Praxair, Inc is an industrial gas company. The Company’s operations are organized into five segments, four of which have been determined on a geographic basis of segmentation: North America, Europe, South America and Asia. In addition, it operates its surface technologies business through its subsidiary, Praxair Surface Technologies, Inc, which represents the fifth segment.

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