First Trust Advisors LP Grows Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 268.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 822,589 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 599,513 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.37% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $232,019,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the second quarter worth $28,000. Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 228.1% in the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 46.7% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 110 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $261.30 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -146.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $257.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $276.38. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $235.55 and a 12 month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 positive return on equity of 15.18% and a negative net margin of 3.28%.Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.56 earnings per share. Air Products and Chemicals has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.100 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.850-13.150 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast 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 firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd will be paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is presently -402.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho set a $300.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, November 28th. Argus raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $335.00 price target on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $275.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $313.75.

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.