Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New Investment in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 11,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,283,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of APD. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $945,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 197.6% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 281,861 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $79,498,000 after acquiring an additional 187,142 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.1% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 103,777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,271,000 after buying an additional 2,171 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 52.5% during the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,873,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE:APD opened at $277.95 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $229.11 and a 52 week high of $307.96. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $289.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $277.75. The company has a market capitalization of $61.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 16.91%.The company’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $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. Equities analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.23 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.81 per share. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho set a $345.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of 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. Bank of America raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.12.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

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

Air Products and Chemicals Profile

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.