Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Short Interest Update

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 4,461,380 shares, a decline of 12.4% from the February 12th total of 5,094,818 shares. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,618,327 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,618,327 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. Argus lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $317.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $275.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $299.12.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

APD stock opened at $281.96 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -186.73, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $275.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $265.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12-month low of $229.11 and a 12-month high of $301.11.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its earnings results 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. Air Products and Chemicals had a positive return on equity of 15.77% and a negative net margin of 2.73%.The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.86 earnings per share. Air Products and Chemicals’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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, equities analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ridge Lp Mantle sold 70,175 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 93,499 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,573,350.79. This represents a 42.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Air Products and Chemicals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. YANKCOM Partnership raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 2,805 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $791,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 1,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. StoneX Group Inc. grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. StoneX Group Inc. now owns 2,787 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $688,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 642 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sage Capital Advisors llc increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.3% during the third quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc now owns 14,930 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,072,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.