Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the sixteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $287.29.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on APD shares. Barclays increased their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $245.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Bank of America raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $275.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $276.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $279.00 target price for the company.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 62.3% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,230,051 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,720,704,000 after purchasing an additional 4,309,040 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 4.6% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,302,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,502,717,000 after acquiring an additional 235,037 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth about $852,288,000. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 8.7% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,099,419 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $508,626,000 after purchasing an additional 167,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,029,678 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $491,730,000 after purchasing an additional 64,427 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Air Products and Chemicals stock opened at $263.68 on Thursday. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12-month low of $212.24 and a 12-month high of $307.71. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $257.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $251.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 20.32%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.74 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio is 63.90%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company Profile

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc provides atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, equipment, and related services in the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, India, and internationally. The company produces atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, and argon; process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and syngas; and specialty gases for customers in various industries, including refining, chemical, manufacturing, electronics, energy production, medical, food, and metals.