ProShare Advisors LLC Purchases 65,999 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors LLC increased its Air Products and Chemicals stake by 10.9% in the fourth quarter, adding 65,999 shares to bring its total holding to 670,374 shares valued at about $165.6 million.
• Air Products and Chemicals reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.20 and revenue of $3.17 billion, both ahead of analysts’ expectations. Revenue also rose 8.8% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.81 per share, payable August 10, representing an annualized yield of 2.5%. Wall Street’s consensus rating remains Moderate Buy with an average price target of $323.12.

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 10.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 670,374 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 65,999 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.30% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $165,596,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rockland Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 56,909 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $14,058,000 after purchasing an additional 4,319 shares during the period. Platform Technology Partners grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 683.0% in the 3rd quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 7,164 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,954,000 after purchasing an additional 6,249 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 789,659 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $215,356,000 after purchasing an additional 111,317 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 486,719 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $121,909,000 after purchasing an additional 23,760 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 57,474 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $14,197,000 after purchasing an additional 5,909 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.7%

NYSE APD opened at $293.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $65.33 billion, a PE ratio of 31.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.77. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $229.11 and a one year high of $307.96. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $293.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $272.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 16.91%.Air Products and Chemicals's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.69 EPS. 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. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is 76.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.76, for a total value of $824,404.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,317,037.12. This trade represents a 16.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on APD. Weiss Ratings upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $360.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $307.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $338.00 to $341.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Mizuho set a $345.00 price objective on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $323.12.

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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