Viking Fund Management LLC Lowers Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Viking Fund Management LLC cut its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 57.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 15,000 shares during the period. Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $2,717,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $945,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 114.2% in the 2nd quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 782 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 57,639 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $16,258,000 after buying an additional 5,430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.9% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,319,240 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $372,105,000 after buying an additional 11,433 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, Director Ridge Lp Mantle sold 70,175 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.21, for a total transaction of $19,944,436.75. Following the sale, the director owned 93,499 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,573,350.79. This represents a 42.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on APD. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $280.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Bank of America upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $275.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $300.88.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $286.52 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $276.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $265.40. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $229.11 and a 52 week high of $301.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.80 billion, a P/E ratio of -189.75, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.88.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a negative net margin of 2.73% and a positive return on equity of 15.77%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.86 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.100 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.850-13.150 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.81 dividend. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -474.17%.

Air Products and Chemicals Profile

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc is a global supplier of industrial gases and related equipment and services, headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The company produces and delivers atmospheric gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and argon, as well as specialty and process gases used across a wide range of industrial applications. Air Products designs, builds and operates gas production facilities, merchant distribution networks and on-site gas systems for customers that require reliable, high-purity gases and integrated supply solutions.

The company’s product and service portfolio includes packaged and bulk gas supply, pipeline distribution, on-site generation, gas handling and storage equipment, and engineered systems for gas liquefaction and purification.