Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 821,524 Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,616,305 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 821,524 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,258,678,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in APD. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 57,639 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $16,258,000 after purchasing an additional 5,430 shares during the last quarter. Platform Technology Partners lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 683.0% in the 3rd quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 7,164 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,954,000 after buying an additional 6,249 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 7.4% in the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 673,400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $189,939,000 after buying an additional 46,200 shares in the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 5.5% in the third quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 52,590 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,342,000 after buying an additional 2,741 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 16.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 789,659 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $215,356,000 after acquiring an additional 111,317 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ridge Lp Mantle sold 70,175 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on APD. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $255.00 target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $295.88.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $275.19 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $61.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -182.24, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.88. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $229.11 and a fifty-two week high of $304.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.46. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $271.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $266.01.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its 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. Air Products and Chemicals had a negative net margin of 2.73% and a positive return on equity of 15.77%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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. 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.81 dividend. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is -474.17%.

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.