Czech National Bank Boosts Stake in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Czech National Bank lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) by 4.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 63,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,745 shares during the period. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $18,583,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 486,719 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $121,909,000 after purchasing an additional 23,760 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 135,947 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,582,000 after buying an additional 6,342 shares during the last quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at $1,649,000. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. now owns 124,278 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,699,000 after purchasing an additional 4,045 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 22.7% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 40,511 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,007,000 after purchasing an additional 7,485 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $320.00 price objective on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $340.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $330.00 to $336.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $358.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $350.00 target price on Air Products and Chemicals and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $332.76.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 1.1%

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $303.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $290.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $287.76. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $229.11 and a 52 week high of $314.87. The stock has a market cap of $67.55 billion, a PE ratio of -1,378.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.34 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.20 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a negative net margin of 0.38% and a positive return on equity of 16.87%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.09 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.390-13.490 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.550-3.650 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 1st will be issued a $1.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is -3,290.91%.

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.