The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Reduces Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its Air Products and Chemicals stake by 4.2% in the second quarter, selling 4,892 shares and retaining 112,169 shares valued at approximately $32.9 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 81.66% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $336.53. Recent target increases included Mizuho to $355 and Wells Fargo to $350.
• Air Products and Chemicals exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $3.47 versus the $3.34 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 4.6% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.81 per share, representing a 2.5% annualized yield.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 4.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 112,169 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 4,892 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.05% of Air Products and Chemicals worth $32,886,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 318.2% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 92 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Main Street Group LTD purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley set a $320.00 target price on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $340.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Argus upped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $316.00 to $329.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $336.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $291.70 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $229.11 and a 52-week high of $314.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $64.96 billion, a PE ratio of -1,325.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $300.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $292.81.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.34 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a positive return on equity of 16.87% and a negative net margin of 0.38%.Air Products and Chemicals's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.09 earnings per share. Air Products and Chemicals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.390-13.490 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.550-3.650 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.46 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -3,290.91%.

About Air Products and Chemicals

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc is a global industrial gases and chemicals company headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1940, the company supplies atmospheric and process gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, argon, hydrogen, helium, carbon monoxide and syngas, along with related equipment and technical services.

Air Products serves customers in industries such as refining, chemicals, metals, electronics, manufacturing, food and beverage, healthcare and energy. Its offerings support applications including combustion, metal fabrication, semiconductor production, food preservation, medical care and industrial processing.

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