Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Acquires New Shares in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 75,102 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,183,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,739,830 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,131,936,000 after purchasing an additional 324,885 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 31.5% in the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 8,759,722 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,583,417,000 after acquiring an additional 2,096,568 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 5.1% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,434,228 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,814,839,000 after acquiring an additional 310,799 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,134,550 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,450,526,000 after acquiring an additional 27,256 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,096,277 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $913,154,000 after purchasing an additional 43,695 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 2.5%

APD opened at $257.39 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $262.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $277.16. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $235.55 and a 52 week high of $341.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $57.28 billion, a PE ratio of 37.03, a P/E/G ratio of 5.16 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.38 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.11% and a net margin of 12.86%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.56 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.100 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 12.850-13.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -402.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $335.00 price objective on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $325.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Argus upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Finally, Mizuho set a $300.00 price target on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $313.75.

Air Products and Chemicals Company Profile

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.