Staley Capital Advisers Inc. Increases Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Staley Capital Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 108.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 144,032 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 74,868 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals comprises about 1.5% of Staley Capital Advisers Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Staley Capital Advisers Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $35,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3,233.3% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.76, for a total transaction of $824,404.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 14,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,317,037.12. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $338.00 to $341.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.12.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $295.14 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $292.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $271.87. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $229.11 and a 12 month high of $307.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.23, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.77. 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 (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.14. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 16.91%.The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. As a group, analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.61%.

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.