Barclays PLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• Barclays PLC cut its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 30.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 237,996 shares and ending with 551,663 shares worth about $136.3 million.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive on APD, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus target price of $323.12. Several firms recently raised their price targets, while Deutsche Bank reiterated a hold rating.
• Air Products beat quarterly expectations and kept paying a healthy dividend, reporting EPS of $3.20 versus $3.06 expected and revenue of $3.17 billion. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.81 per share, implying a 2.6% yield.

Barclays PLC lowered its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 30.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 551,663 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 237,996 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.25% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $136,272,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3,233.3% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 100 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on APD. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $303.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $323.12.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the company'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 transaction of $824,404.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,317,037.12. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.88% of the company's stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of APD opened at $282.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.01 billion, a PE ratio of 29.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.74. 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 company's 50-day simple moving average is $292.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $276.58.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 for 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $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. Analysts forecast 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.81 per share. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.

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