HF Capital LLC Buys Shares of 63,149 Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

HF Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 63,149 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,344,000. Air Products and Chemicals comprises 7.7% of HF Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 6.7% in the first quarter. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 11,330 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,290,000 after acquiring an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 96.5% during the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 509 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 63.4% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 165 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 33.8% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 5,565 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 1,405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,609,936 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $467,716,000 after purchasing an additional 42,137 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 2,714 shares of the company’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 transaction of $824,404.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,317,037.12. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on APD shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $344.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $303.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Products and Chemicals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.88.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.4%

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $296.72 on Tuesday. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a one year low of $229.11 and a one year high of $314.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $289.64 and a 200 day moving average of $284.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.43. The stock has a market cap of $66.07 billion, a PE ratio of 31.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.73.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.69 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. 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, sell-side analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.22 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $1.81 per share. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 76.61%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company 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.