Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Has $12.16 Million Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 97.1% in the first quarter, holding 41,239 shares valued at approximately $12.16 million.
• Multiple analysts have raised their price targets for Air Products and Chemicals, with a consensus average target of $335.07 and ratings ranging from "sell" to "strong buy."
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.79 per share, reflecting an annualized amount of $7.16 and a dividend yield of 2.4%.

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 97.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 41,239 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 20,318 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $12,162,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Mantle Ridge LP acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,191,344,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 129.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,429,147 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,574,670,000 after purchasing an additional 3,062,157 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $436,636,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 31,752.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,249,871 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $368,612,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245,947 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 159.2% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,725,762 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $508,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059,970 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Barclays reduced their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $335.07.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

APD traded up $2.2650 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $290.4050. The stock had a trading volume of 340,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,307,421. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $287.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $287.47. The firm has a market cap of $64.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.79, a P/E/G ratio of 6.48 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $243.69 and a one year high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.10. The business 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 EPS. 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, research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals's payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 8,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,539,612.68. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.