Public Investment Fund Boosts Stock Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• The Public Investment Fund increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. by 4.5%, owning a total of 881,539 shares worth approximately $260 million.
• Air Products and Chemicals announced a quarterly dividend of $1.79, with a payout ratio of 103.02%, reflecting strong cash flow despite recent earnings performance.
• The stock's analysts have varying target prices, with some projecting prices as high as $355, indicating a potential positive outlook for investors.

Public Investment Fund raised its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 881,539 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 38,000 shares during the quarter. Air Products and Chemicals makes up 1.0% of Public Investment Fund's portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Public Investment Fund owned 0.40% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $259,983,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Citizens National Bank Trust Department lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 833.3% in the first quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 112 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 525.9% in the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3,560.0% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 183 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $335.07.

Insider Activity

In other 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 value of $397,344.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,539,612.68. This trade represents a 13.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE APD traded down $1.94 during trading on Thursday, hitting $289.35. 189,637 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,263,744. The company has a market capitalization of $64.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.56 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $291.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $285.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.69 and a 12-month high of $341.14.

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 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 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business 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, analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

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

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.