Night Squared LP Buys Shares of 18,247 Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• Night Squared LP has invested $5.38 million in Air Products and Chemicals, acquiring 18,247 shares, which now represent 3.2% of their investment portfolio.
• Air Products and Chemicals reported an EPS of $3.09 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates and achieving year-over-year revenue growth of 1.2%.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.79, with an annualized payout of $7.16, resulting in a yield of 2.4%, despite a high dividend payout ratio of 103.02%.

Night Squared LP bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 18,247 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $5,381,000. Air Products and Chemicals makes up approximately 3.2% of Night Squared LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,385 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $703,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Public Investment Fund raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.5% during the first quarter. Public Investment Fund now owns 881,539 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $259,983,000 after purchasing an additional 38,000 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 127,365 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,562,000 after purchasing an additional 2,419 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 38.8% during the first quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 7,278 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,147,000 after purchasing an additional 2,033 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 0.5% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 133,751 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $39,446,000 after purchasing an additional 712 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded down $1.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $291.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 606,620 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,270,217. The firm has a market cap of $64.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.88, a PEG ratio of 6.56 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $291.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $285.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.69 and a twelve month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $3.02 billion during 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%. The firm's revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company 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. 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 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. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals's payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lifted 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. UBS Group lifted 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. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated 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. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $335.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 shares were 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 owned 8,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,539,612.68. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.