Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD Shares Acquired by Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 56.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 149,797 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 53,986 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned 0.07% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $37,003,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in APD. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $945,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $245,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 197.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 281,861 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $79,498,000 after acquiring an additional 187,142 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 103,777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,271,000 after acquiring an additional 2,171 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 52.5% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,873,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.76, for a total value of $824,404.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,317,037.12. The trade was 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 at this hyperlink. 1.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on APD. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $338.00 to $341.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.12.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $282.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $63.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $292.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $276.58. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $229.11 and a 12-month high of $307.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 16.91% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.69 EPS. 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. Equities analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a $1.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 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.