Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Short Interest Down 12.4% in February

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) saw a significant drop in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 4,461,380 shares, a drop of 12.4% from the February 12th total of 5,094,818 shares. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,618,327 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.8 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,618,327 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

APD traded up $1.61 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $287.76. The stock had a trading volume of 276,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,508,560. Air Products and Chemicals has a one year low of $229.11 and a one year high of $301.11. The firm has a market cap of $64.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -190.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $274.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $265.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.23.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.12. Air Products and Chemicals had a positive return on equity of 15.77% and a negative net margin of 2.73%.The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.86 earnings per share. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Air Products and Chemicals has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.100 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.850-13.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be given a $1.81 dividend. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 1st. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is -474.17%.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, Director Ridge Lp Mantle sold 70,175 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.21, for a total transaction of $19,944,436.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 93,499 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,573,350.79. This represents a 42.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of APD. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,063,906,000. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 44.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,792,580 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,160,023,000 after buying an additional 3,922,567 shares during the last quarter. Viking Global Investors LP bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the second quarter worth about $607,601,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 70.2% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,694,659 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $665,609,000 after acquiring an additional 1,111,378 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 644.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,031,306 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $281,258,000 after acquiring an additional 892,793 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on APD. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $270.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $313.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold 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 target price of $299.12.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.