Fruth Investment Management Lowers Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Fruth Investment Management lessened its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 0.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,906 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 81 shares during the period. Air Products and Chemicals accounts for approximately 1.7% of Fruth Investment Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $6,165,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APD. Dodge & Cox lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 31.5% during the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 8,759,722 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,583,417,000 after purchasing an additional 2,096,568 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 31,752.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,249,871 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $368,612,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245,947 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 159.2% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,725,762 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $508,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059,970 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 110.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,441,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $425,202,000 after purchasing an additional 756,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth about $105,006,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 1,359 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total transaction of $397,344.42. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 8,686 shares in the company, valued at $2,539,612.68. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on APD. UBS Group upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $290.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $335.07.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 2.4%

APD opened at $294.49 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $65.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.37, a P/E/G ratio of 6.41 and a beta of 0.82. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $291.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $284.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.12 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) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.10. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.11% and a net margin of 12.86%.The firm had revenue of $3.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.20 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. 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 analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.