Air Products 4Q Profit Climbs While Sales Slip

By Dean Seal

Air Products & Chemicals logged lower sales and higher earnings in its fiscal fourth quarter as its energy pass-through charges fell but prices increased.

The Allentown, Pa.-based provider of essential industrial gases and chemicals posted a profit of $692.6 million, or $3.11 a share, for the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with $583.1 million, or $2.62 a share, in the same quarter a year ago.

Stripping out one-time items, adjusted earnings were $3.15 a share. Analysts polled by FactSet had been expecting $3.11 a share.

Sales came in at $3.19 billion, down from $3.57 billion in the year-ago quarter and below analyst projections for $3.35 billion, according to FactSet.

The 11% year-over-year decline was driven by lower energy cost pass-through, which was partially offset by higher prices and dented sales but not profits.

Those higher prices along with higher equity affiliates' income more than offset higher costs and helped boost the quarter's bottom line. The year-ago quarter's earnings were affected by the company's divestiture of its business in Russia, as well as the impairment of two equity affiliates in the Asia segment.

Write to Dean Seal at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 07, 2023 06:31 ET (11:31 GMT)

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