Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $296.50.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $275.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Barclays upped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $290.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 3,740 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $906,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 10,906 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,814,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,763 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $455,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.4% during the second quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 1,213 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.6% in the second quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 1,581 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $408,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD opened at $285.45 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $280.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $262.92. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12 month low of $212.24 and a 12 month high of $302.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.82.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 21.24%. As a group, analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.33 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.90%.

About Air Products and Chemicals

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.