Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) Sees Strong Trading Volume

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday . 2,839,710 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 64% from the previous session’s volume of 1,731,468 shares.The stock last traded at $262.82 and had previously closed at $267.09.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $279.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $245.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $287.29.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $58.48 billion, a PE ratio of 23.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $258.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $251.91.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.70 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 20.32% and a return on equity of 16.56%. The firm’s revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.74 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 62.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,230,051 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,720,704,000 after purchasing an additional 4,309,040 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 4.6% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,302,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,502,717,000 after acquiring an additional 235,037 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter valued at $852,288,000. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 8.7% in 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 buying an additional 167,800 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.3% in 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 acquiring an additional 64,427 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

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.