Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD Shares Acquired by Aptus Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 24.2% during Q1, holding 18,670 shares worth approximately $5.51 million.
• Air Products reported $3.09 earnings per share for the latest quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $3.02 billion, up 1.2% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.79 per share, with a payout ratio of 103.02%, highlighting its ongoing commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 24.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,670 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,640 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $5,506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 1,540 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 10.2% in the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% in the first quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 1,541 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $454,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% in the first quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,499 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $737,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stableford Capital II LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.3% in the first quarter. Stableford Capital II LLC now owns 3,222 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $950,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were 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 owned 8,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,539,612.68. This represents a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on APD. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $335.07.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE:APD traded up $5.4990 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $299.0190. 765,247 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 930,976. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market cap of $66.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.02, a PEG ratio of 6.55 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.69 and a 52-week high of $341.14. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $288.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $286.96.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $3.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 12.86% and a return on equity of 15.11%. Air Products and Chemicals's revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm 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. As a group, analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be given a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is presently 103.02%.

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.