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

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $343.53.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $315.00 to $365.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $310.31 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $69.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12 month low of $227.53 and a 12 month high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $310.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $306.41.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is 41.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Products and Chemicals

In other news, VP Victoria Brifo sold 2,362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.82, for a total transaction of $745,966.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,172,411.90. The trade was a 19.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,911 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,897 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter worth $25,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.