Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC Sells 390 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC cut its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,795 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 390 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals makes up approximately 4.1% of Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $6,430,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Dodge & Cox lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 31.5% during the 1st quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 8,759,722 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,583,417,000 after buying an additional 2,096,568 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 159.2% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,725,762 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $508,962,000 after acquiring an additional 1,059,970 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 110.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,441,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $425,202,000 after acquiring an additional 756,780 shares during the last quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 251.4% during the first quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 311,668 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $91,917,000 after acquiring an additional 222,980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter valued at $42,661,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $271.24 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $287.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $281.69. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.69 and a 1-year high of $341.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.03, a P/E/G ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.10. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 12.86% and a return on equity of 15.11%. The company had revenue of $3.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.20 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Air Products and Chemicals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 11.900-12.100 EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 3.270-3.470 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total value of $397,344.42. Following the sale, the vice president owned 8,686 shares in the company, valued at $2,539,612.68. This represents a 13.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Argus raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $335.06.

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.