Legal & General Group Plc Acquires 37,079 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,130,644 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 37,079 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $308,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pinkerton Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 18.4% during the third quarter. Pinkerton Wealth LLC now owns 11,718 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,823 shares in the last quarter. Fieldview Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 137,875 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,426,000 after purchasing an additional 4,699 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.3% during the third quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,685 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,823,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProVise Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. ProVise Management Group LLC now owns 18,819 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,132,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other 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 transaction, the director directly owned 93,499 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,573,350.79. This represents a 42.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $277.69 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $271.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $266.09. 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 market cap of $61.83 billion, a PE ratio of -183.90, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.86 earnings per share. 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. As a group, analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -474.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on APD. Mizuho reduced their price objective on 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. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $255.00 price target on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Argus cut their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $317.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.88.

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.