Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $299.1176.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $270.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $272.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $275.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $281.96 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $275.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $265.83. Air Products and Chemicals has a fifty-two week low of $229.11 and a fifty-two week high of $301.11. The firm has a market cap of $62.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -186.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.88.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a positive return on equity of 15.77% and a negative net margin of 2.73%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business 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. Sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals 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 given a dividend of $1.81 per share. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently -474.17%.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, Director Ridge Lp Mantle sold 70,175 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.21, for a total value of $19,944,436.75. Following the sale, the director directly owned 93,499 shares in the company, valued at $26,573,350.79. This trade represents a 42.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of APD. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 59,151 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,612,000 after buying an additional 534 shares during the period. Winthrop Partners WNY LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth $1,307,000. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth about $1,691,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 466,254 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $115,224,000 after acquiring an additional 25,977 shares during the period. Finally, Bayban acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

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.