Phoenix Financial Ltd. Cuts Position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Phoenix Financial Ltd. reduced its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 15.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,504 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,977 shares during the quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $2,866,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,623 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Saxon Interests Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.5% during the third quarter. Saxon Interests Inc. now owns 4,613 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,357,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 103.1% during the 3rd quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 8,346 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,277,000 after buying an additional 4,237 shares in the last quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,864 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,145,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 10,316 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,813,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on APD shares. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $375.00 to $325.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $245.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $255.00 price target on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (down from $330.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $293.80.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of APD stock opened at $258.91 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $229.11 and a 12-month high of $341.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.63 billion, a P/E ratio of -145.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.87. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $253.96 and its 200 day moving average is $268.87.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.38 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a negative net margin of 3.28% and a positive return on equity of 15.18%. The firm’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.56 earnings per share. Air Products and Chemicals has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.100 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.850-13.150 EPS. Research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.81 per share. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 1st. This is an increase from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is presently -402.25%.

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.