Shares of Air Products plummeted Monday after the industrial gas company cut its forecast for 2024 earnings on weak helium sales in Asia.

Shares were down $40.69, or 16%, to $217.48 at 10:22 a.m. That knocked billions of dollars of the company's market value.

"Our results diverged from the guidance," Seifi Ghasemi, chairman, chief executive and president of Air Products said during a conference call Monday.

The Upper Macungie Township-based company cut its full-year forecast for adjusted earnings per share to $12.20 to $12.50. Adjusted earnings exclude items the company considers to be one-time or unusual.

The new numbers are below the company's projection in November, when Air Products forecast adjusted EPS of $12.80 to $13.10 for fiscal 2024. The company also reduced its projected second-quarter adjusted EPS to $2.60 to $2.75, down from $2.90 to $3.05.

Air Products' fiscal first-quarter adjusted earnings per share were reported Monday and also came up short, at $2.82, below Air Products' projected range of $2.90 to $3.05. First-quarter revenue was $3 billion, below the $3.31 billion estimate of Wall Street analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research.

"We had given you a forecast and we delivered less than the forecast," Ghasemi said. He said helium sales to electronics companies in Asia, particularly China, were weaker than expected.

Ghasemi did note multiple times during the call that the company's numbers are ahead of fiscal 2023, but shares dropped after the lowered forecast for this year.

The CEO said that governments in Japan, Europe and the U.S. are promoting the use of clean replacements for fossil fuels, and that Air Products, the world's biggest producer of hydrogen, will be ready to supply that demand. The company has a "first mover advantage," he said.

Air Products' portfolio includes "blue hydrogen," with carbon emissions captured during production, and "green hydrogen," which is made from water using renewable energy. The company's goal is to reduce or eliminate emissions of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that is linked to climate change.

Ghasemi contends that hydrogen can be used to replace fossil fuels in some industries, making money for Air Products and helping move the world to a clean-energy economy.

Ghasemi also said Air Products' adjusted EPS has grown at an 11% compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) since 2014, and its dividend has increased at a 9% CAGR over the same period.

In the company's Americas segment, sales were $1.25 billion in the first quarter, down 10%. In Asia, sales were up 2% to $794 million, while Europe sales dropped 8% to $731 million. Sales fell $6 million to $35 million in the Middle East and India, and corporate sales were up 6% to $185 million.

Ghasemi said recent missile strikes in the Middle East have not affected its operations in Saudi Arabia. That country shares a border with Yemen, where the U.S. military has launched attacks.

Several factors played into the company missing its own forecast, Ghasemi said in a statement.

"Our reported results were lower than our expectations, mainly due to a slowdown in manufacturing in Asia, particularly in China; lower helium demand; cost headwinds from a sale of equipment project, and current devaluation in Argentina," he said in a prepared statement at 6 a.m. Monday.

The estimate for full-year capital expenditures remains $5.0 to $5.5 billion.

Earnings for the first quarter on a Generally Accepted Accounting Principles basis, or GAAP, were $2.73 per share. GAAP does not allow for adjustments.

Shares in Air Products are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol APD. The closing price Friday was $258.17.

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