Founders Capital Management Cuts Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Founders Capital Management cut its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.5% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 19,203 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 88 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for 3.2% of Founders Capital Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Founders Capital Management’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,416,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of APD. Dodge & Cox grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 2,096,568 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 159.2% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,725,762 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $508,962,000 after buying an additional 1,059,970 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 110.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,441,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $425,202,000 after buying an additional 756,780 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 251.4% during the first quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 311,668 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $91,917,000 after buying an additional 222,980 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the first quarter worth $42,661,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on APD shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Argus raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $335.06.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of APD opened at $272.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.25, a P/E/G ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 0.82. 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 current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $288.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $282.18.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.11% and a net margin of 12.86%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.20 earnings per share. 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. Equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total value of $397,344.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,686 shares in the company, valued at $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 is available through the SEC website. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals 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.