Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD Position Boosted by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 1,362.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,846 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,694 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $4,894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of APD. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3,233.3% during the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho set a $345.00 target price on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Berenberg Bank set a $350.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.12.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD opened at $277.95 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $289.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $277.75. The stock has a market cap of $61.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.41, a PEG ratio of 2.43 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. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $229.11 and a one year high of $307.96.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 16.91% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.69 earnings per share. 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, equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.61%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 14,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,317,037.12. This trade represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.