St. James Investment Company LLC Takes $10.05 Million Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• St. James Investment Company LLC has acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc., amounting to approximately $10.05 million for 35,641 shares, making it the company's 21st largest position in their portfolio.
• Institutional investors currently own 81.66% of Air Products and Chemicals' stock, with notable increases in holdings by firms like Dodge & Cox and Principal Financial Group.
• Recent analyst activity has led to mixed price targets for Air Products and Chemicals, with UBS lowering their target from $354 to $350 while Mizuho increased theirs from $310 to $325, reflecting varying outlooks on the company's performance.

St. James Investment Company LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 35,641 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $10,053,000. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for 1.6% of St. James Investment Company LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of APD. Dodge & Cox increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 31.5% in the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 8,759,722 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,583,417,000 after purchasing an additional 2,096,568 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 159.2% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,725,762 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $508,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059,970 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 110.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,441,752 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $425,202,000 after purchasing an additional 756,780 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC increased 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 valued at $91,917,000 after purchasing an additional 222,980 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter valued at $42,661,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $2,539,612.68. This trade represents a 13.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $354.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Mizuho increased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $325.00 to $308.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $335.00 price target on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $330.00.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD opened at $254.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $280.31 and a 200-day moving average of $279.19. The company has a market cap of $56.71 billion, a PE ratio of 36.66, a P/E/G ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.83. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $243.69 and a one year high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 period 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. On average, equities research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals 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.

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