Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD Stock Holdings Lessened by BNP Paribas

Key Points

• BNP Paribas sharply reduced its APD stake in the fourth quarter, cutting holdings by 48.6% and selling 7,176 shares. The bank still owned 7,597 shares valued at about $1.88 million.
• Air Products and Chemicals beat earnings expectations for the latest quarter, reporting EPS of $3.20 versus the $3.06 estimate and revenue of $3.17 billion, above forecasts. The company also raised its fiscal 2026 EPS guidance to $13.00-$13.25.
• Analysts remain cautiously positive on the stock, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.12. Shares were trading around $279.21, below the consensus target, while the company continues to pay a quarterly dividend of $1.81 per share.

BNP Paribas cut its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 48.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,597 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 7,176 shares during the period. BNP Paribas' holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,879,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 21,023 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $5,193,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC now owns 2,312 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $571,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Lcnb Corp boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Lcnb Corp now owns 1,078 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 264,281 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $65,283,000 after purchasing an additional 16,744 shares during the period. Finally, Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 4,736 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,170,000 after purchasing an additional 497 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $323.12.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of APD stock opened at $279.21 on Wednesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $229.11 and a 1 year high of $307.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.43. The business's fifty day moving average is $294.10 and its 200-day moving average is $274.90. The stock has a market cap of $62.18 billion, a PE ratio of 29.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.74.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 16.91%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. 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 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, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $1.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,212 shares in the company, valued at $4,317,037.12. The trade was a 16.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Company Profile

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.

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