O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. Increases Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 24.1% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,024 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 782 shares during the period. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Citizens National Bank Trust Department increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 833.3% during the first quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 112 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.2%

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $271.24 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $287.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $281.69. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.69 and a 12 month high of $341.14. The company has a market capitalization of $60.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 0.83.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.10. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.11% and a net margin of 12.86%.The business had revenue of $3.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Air Products and Chemicals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 11.900-12.100 EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 3.270-3.470 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 103.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total value of $397,344.42. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,539,612.68. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $335.06.

About Air Products and Chemicals

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc provides atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, equipment, and related services in the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, India, and internationally. The company produces atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, and argon; process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and syngas; and specialty gases for customers in various industries, including refining, chemical, manufacturing, electronics, energy production, medical, food, and metals.