APD vs. AVY: Air Products and Chemicals vs. Avery Dennison Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY) both fall under the Materials industry group, but APD is classified in Chemicals while AVY is classified in Containers & Packaging.

Company profile comparison for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Profile Item	APD	AVY
Name	Air Products and Chemicals Inc.	Avery Dennison Corporation
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Chemicals	Containers & Packaging
GICS Sub-Industry	Industrial Gases	Paper & Plastic Packaging Products & Materials
Market Capitalization	67.88 billion USD	14.10 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	February 21, 1973
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

APD

AVY

GSPC

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
Total Return (1Y)	23.26%	10.80%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	8.49%	3.97%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	2.43%	-1.88%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

APD

AVY

GSPC

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	25.21%	24.05%
Beta (5Y)	0.67	0.75
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-31.77%	-31.73%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.06M	836.04K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

APD and AVY are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.75	0.27
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.14	0.43

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Avery Dennison (AVY) at 30.80% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 3.19% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for AVY.

APD

Materials industry group

3.19%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
APD: 3.19%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

AVY

Materials industry group

30.80%

Max: 52.88%
AVY: 30.80%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 4.10% and Avery Dennison (AVY) at 7.56% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

APD

Materials industry group

4.10%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
APD: 4.10%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

AVY

Materials industry group

7.56%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
AVY: 7.56%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 17.68% and Avery Dennison (AVY) at 12.10% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

APD

Materials industry group

17.68%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
APD: 17.68%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

AVY

Materials industry group

12.10%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
AVY: 12.10%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
ROE (TTM)	3.19%	30.80%
ROA (TTM)	4.80%	8.28%
Net Margin (TTM)	4.10%	7.56%
Operating Margin (TTM)	17.68%	12.10%
Gross Margin (TTM)	31.58%	28.83%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Avery Dennison (AVY) at 1.14% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at -0.52% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Avery Dennison (AVY) at 0.69% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at -110.30% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
Revenue Growth (YoY)	-0.52%	1.14%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-1.77%	-0.68%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-110.30%	0.69%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	-1.54%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 1.07 and Avery Dennison (AVY) at 1.16 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

APD

Materials industry group

1.07

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
APD: 1.07
Min: 0.16

AVY

Materials industry group

1.16

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
AVY: 1.16
Min: 0.16

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 1.06 and Avery Dennison (AVY) at 1.52 lean more heavily on debt funding than most peers, landing in the higher-leverage quartile of their industries.

APD

Materials industry group

1.06

Max: 1.98
APD: 1.06
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

AVY

Materials industry group

1.52

Max: 1.98
AVY: 1.52
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.07	1.16
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.06	1.52
Net Debt / EBITDA	3.61	2.20

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 2.33% and Avery Dennison (AVY) at 2.05% offer top-quartile dividend income relative to share price within their industries.

APD

Materials industry group

2.33%

Max: 4.52%
APD: 2.33%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AVY

Materials industry group

2.05%

Max: 4.52%
AVY: 2.05%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 75.66% and Avery Dennison (AVY) at 41.99% pay out an above-typical share of earnings for their industries, leaving thinner cover if profits dip.

APD

Materials industry group

75.66%

Max: 83.62%
APD: 75.66%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AVY

Materials industry group

41.99%

Max: 83.62%
AVY: 41.99%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.33%	2.05%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	75.66%	41.99%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Avery Dennison (AVY) at 20.21 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 127.55 sits above its peer range — an unusually expensive price for APD’s trailing earnings.

APD

Materials industry group

127.55

APD: 127.55
Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

AVY

Materials industry group

20.21

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
AVY: 20.21
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Avery Dennison (AVY) at 1.51 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 5.23 sits in the pricier quartile — APD costs more per dollar of sales.

APD

Materials industry group

5.23

Max: 9.62
APD: 5.23
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

AVY

Materials industry group

1.51

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
AVY: 1.51
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both Air Products and Chemicals (APD) at 4.76 and Avery Dennison (AVY) at 5.91 carry a premium to book value versus peers, sitting in the upper P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

APD

Materials industry group

4.76

Max: 6.59
APD: 4.76
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

AVY

Materials industry group

5.91

Max: 6.59
AVY: 5.91
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

Air Products and Chemicals (APD) vs. Avery Dennison (AVY): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Air Products and Chemicals (APD) and Avery Dennison (AVY)
Metric	APD	AVY
P/E Ratio (TTM)	127.55	20.21
P/S Ratio (TTM)	5.23	1.51
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.76	5.91
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-0.28%	6.90%