Confluence Investment Management LLC Sells 12,255 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Confluence Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 190,299 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 12,255 shares during the quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $47,008,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of APD. Norges Bank bought a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the second quarter worth $1,020,081,000. Viking Global Investors LP bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 2nd quarter valued at $607,601,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 644.6% in 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 worth $281,258,000 after purchasing an additional 892,793 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,616,305 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,258,678,000 after purchasing an additional 821,524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,870,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,419,029,000 after purchasing an additional 609,489 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Ridge Lp Mantle sold 70,175 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.21, for a total value of $19,944,436.75. Following the sale, the director owned 93,499 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,573,350.79. The trade was a 42.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $284.72 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $63.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -188.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $275.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $265.96. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $229.11 and a twelve month high of $301.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.46.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a negative net margin of 2.73% and a positive return on equity of 15.77%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.86 earnings per share. 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 expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on APD. Mizuho cut 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Bank of America raised Air Products and Chemicals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $275.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $282.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.