Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 147,228 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 294.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 197,207 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 147,228 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for about 1.4% of Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $48,714,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rockland Trust Co. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 8.2% in 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 during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 486,719 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $121,909,000 after acquiring an additional 23,760 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 789,659 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $215,356,000 after purchasing an additional 111,317 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 57,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,197,000 after purchasing an additional 5,909 shares during the period. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.9% during 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 buying an additional 21,479 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised 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 note 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 issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.12.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE APD opened at $279.21 on Wednesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $229.11 and a 1 year high of $307.96. The company has a market cap of $62.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.55, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $294.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $274.90.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.14. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 16.91%.The firm had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be issued a $1.81 dividend. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 76.61%.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.76, for a total value of $824,404.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 14,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,317,037.12. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

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.