Legacy Financial Strategies LLC Sells 7,746 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• Legacy Financial Strategies LLC significantly reduced its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. by 77.9% during the second quarter, bringing its stake down to 2,202 shares worth $621,000.
• Various institutional investors have increased their positions in Air Products, with notable boosts including Electron Capital Partners LLC that raised its stake by 251.4% in the first quarter.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook on Air Products, with an average price target of $335.07 and several upgrades from firms like UBS Group and Mizuho.

Legacy Financial Strategies LLC cut its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 77.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,202 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 7,746 shares during the quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $621,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 20.9% in the first quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 1,603 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $473,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.8% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 18,796 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $5,543,000 after acquiring an additional 5,445 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 8.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,238 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,250,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter worth $427,000. Finally, Electron Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 251.4% in the first quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 311,668 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $91,917,000 after acquiring an additional 222,980 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on APD shares. Mizuho upped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. UBS Group upped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $290.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Argus raised Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $335.07.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded down $2.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $287.98. 470,089 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,233,571. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.09 billion, a PE ratio of 41.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.47 and a beta of 0.82. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.69 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The business's 50-day moving average is $291.62 and its 200-day moving average is $283.36.

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

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 103.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total transaction of $397,344.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 8,686 shares in the company, valued at $2,539,612.68. This trade represents a 13.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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.