Radical investors apply pressure! Air Products announces nomination of two independent directors.

Air Products is facing mounting pressure from hedge fund managers Mantle Ridge and D.E. Shaw, who have criticized the company’s underperforming stock, senior leadership, and capital allocation policies—and are urging a board overhaul to invigorate management and refocus on core operations. In October, activist investors Mantle Ridge and the globally renowned hedge fund D.E. Shaw separately announced they had collectively acquired $1 billion worth of Air Products shares, calling for cost-cutting, sharper focus on core businesses, and paving the way for new leadership. A shared objective of both activist investors is to push Air Products to establish a clear succession plan for its 80-year-old CEO, Seifi Ghasemi—one of the oldest CEOs among S&P 500 constituents. Earlier, Reuters cited informed sources reporting that Dennis Reilley and Eduardo Menezes—two former executives of Linde—would join Mantle Ridge’s campaign to restructure Air Products’ management and board. D.E. Shaw has targeted several of Air Products’ major deals, noting the company has launched multibillion-dollar hydrogen projects lacking “off-take agreements,” exposing them to significant risk. In another letter issued in September, D.E. Shaw pointed out that Air Products’ clean hydrogen strategy has eroded approximately $15 billion in equity value from its core industrial gases business. Anticipating governance reform, investment banks have upgraded Air Products’ stock ratings and price targets, citing activists’ potential positive role in advocating corporate governance reform and strategic realignment. Mizuho Securities raised its target price to $360; Jefferies upgraded its rating to “Buy” with a $364 target price. Evercore ISI also upgraded its rating to “Outperform” and raised its target price to $365. BMO Capital maintained its “Outperform” rating with a $323 target price, while Citigroup raised its target price to $345. Regarding share price performance: Air Products has underperformed the S&P 500 index for two consecutive years. However, its stock has recently surged following the entry of activist investors. As of Monday’s (November 18) close, Air Products rose 3.4% to $327.89, with a market capitalization of $72.8 billion. Year-to-date, the stock is up 20%, still trailing the S&P 500’s同期 gain of 23.5%. 2024 Fiscal Year Net Income Soars: $1.2 Billion Gain from Asset Sale Air Products’ recently released Q4 and full-year FY2024 financial results showed substantial growth, primarily driven by an after-tax gain of $1.2 billion from the sale of its LNG business to Honeywell at the end of Q4. Under U.S. GAAP, Q4 earnings per share (EPS) stood at $8.81, up 186% year-on-year.

C&EN’s 2025 Global Top 50 Chemical Companies: Eight companies from mainland China make the list!

14 Rongsheng Petrochemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $26.4 billion 15 Wanhua Chemical Group 2024 Chemical Sales: $25.3 billion 16 Reliance Industries 2024 Chemical Sales: $25.0 billion 17 Mitsubishi Chemical Group 2024 Chemical Sales: $24.8 billion 18 Hengli Petrochemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $21.3 billion 19 Shin-Etsu Chemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $16.9 billion 20 Evonik Industries 2024 Chemical Sales: $16.4 billion 21 Indorama Ventures 2024 Chemical Sales: $15.5 billion 22 Covestro 2024 Chemical Sales: $15.3 billion 23 Jiangsu Orient盛虹 (Jiangsu Oriental Shenghong) 2024 Chemical Sales: $15.3 billion 24 Lotte Chemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $15.0 billion 25 Toray Industries 2024 Chemical Sales: $14.9 billion 26 Braskem 2024 Chemical Sales: $14.4 billion 27 Sumitomo Chemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $13.9 billion 28 Yara 2024 Chemical Sales: $13.9 billion 29 DSM-Firmenich 2024 Chemical Sales: $13.8 billion 30 Tongkun Holdings Group 2024 Chemical Sales: $13.7 billion 31 DuPont 2024 Chemical Sales: $12.4 billion 32 Chevron Phillips Chemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $12.1 billion 33 Air Products and Chemicals 2024 Chemical Sales: $12.1 billion 34 Mitsui Chemicals 2024 Chemical Sales: $11.9 billion 35 Hengyi Petrochemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $11.8 billion 36 SIBUR 2024 Chemical Sales: $11.2 billion 37 Mosaic 2024 Chemical Sales: $11.1 billion 38 Bayer 2024 Chemical Sales: $11.1 billion 39 Arkema 2024 Chemical Sales: $10.3 billion 40 Celanese 2024 Chemical Sales: $10.3 billion 41 Shell 2024 Chemical Sales: $9.6 billion 42 Nutrien 2024 Chemical Sales: $9.6 billion 43 Eastman Chemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $9.4 billion 44 Xinfengming Group 2024 Chemical Sales: $9.3 billion 45 Resonac Holdings 2024 Chemical Sales: $9.2 billion 46 Asahi Kasei 2024 Chemical Sales: $9.0 billion 47 Borealis 2024 Chemical Sales: $8.5 billion 48 Westlake 2024 Chemical Sales: $8.3 billion 49 PTT Global Chemical 2024 Chemical Sales: $8.1 billion

Air Products & Chemicals Stock Trades at EUR 251.10, Market Cap USD 62.6 Billion

1 day ago

Air Products & Chemicals Inc. shares traded at EUR 251.10 on Tradegate with a market capitalization of USD 62.6 billion. The company is scheduled to release fiscal 2026 results on November 5, 2026.

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Air Products & Chemicals Stock Trades at EUR 251.10, Market Cap USD 62.6 Billion

Air Products & Chemicals Stock Trades at EUR 251.10, Market Cap USD 62.6 Billion

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