Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD Shares Sold by London Co. of Virginia

London Co. of Virginia reduced its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,316,549 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 41,533 shares during the period. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for approximately 2.4% of London Co. of Virginia’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. London Co. of Virginia owned approximately 0.59% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $382,453,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,304,678 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,509,702,000 after buying an additional 303,944 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 44.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,792,580 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,160,023,000 after acquiring an additional 3,922,567 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,904,537 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,940,665,000 after acquiring an additional 137,595 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,911,504 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,448,340,000 after acquiring an additional 352,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dodge & Cox boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 9,236,610 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,281,627,000 after acquiring an additional 231,718 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $298.57 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $66.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.59, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $229.11 and a 12-month high of $314.87. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $289.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $285.45.

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, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. During the same period last year, the firm 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. On average, analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $1.81 per share. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 76.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.76, for a total transaction of $824,404.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,212 shares in the company, valued at $4,317,037.12. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on APD. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $358.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.88.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.