MUFG Securities EMEA plc Has $2.26 Million Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

MUFG Securities EMEA plc grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 114.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 9,134 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,874 shares during the quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $2,256,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rockland Trust Co. grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 56,909 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,058,000 after buying an additional 4,319 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 486,719 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $121,909,000 after acquiring an additional 23,760 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 16.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 789,659 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $215,356,000 after acquiring an additional 111,317 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 57,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,197,000 after acquiring an additional 5,909 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.9% in the third quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 2,299,299 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $627,065,000 after acquiring an additional 21,479 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.76, for a total value of $824,404.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 14,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,317,037.12. The trade was a 16.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on APD. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Berenberg Bank set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.12.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD opened at $278.92 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $294.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $274.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.43. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $229.11 and a 52 week high of $307.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.11 billion, a PE ratio of 29.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.77.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.14. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 16.91% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The firm had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.69 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Air Products and Chemicals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-13.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.250-3.350 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.81 per share. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 76.19%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.