Staley Capital Advisers Inc. Has $62.98 Million Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Staley Capital Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 50.5% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 216,797 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 72,765 shares during the period. Air Products and Chemicals makes up approximately 2.7% of Staley Capital Advisers Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Staley Capital Advisers Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $62,977,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake 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 valued at $945,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $245,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 197.6% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 281,861 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $79,498,000 after purchasing an additional 187,142 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 2,171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 52.5% during the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,873,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,317,037.12. The trade was a 16.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on APD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Mizuho set a $345.00 price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One equities research 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.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $324.82.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $297.01 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $66.14 billion, a PE ratio of 31.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $290.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $281.42. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $229.11 and a one year high of $314.87.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $0.14. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 16.91%.The company had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.69 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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, research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be issued a $1.81 dividend. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.61%.

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.