Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) Sets New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $340.00 to $350.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Air Products and Chemicals traded as high as $332.43 and last traded at $330.94, with a volume of 145632 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $332.10.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $305.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $310.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.82.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in APD. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 2,250.0% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 141 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,700.0% in the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 144 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 128.8% in the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 183 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 0.2 %

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 business’s 50-day simple moving average is $290.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $269.55. The company has a market cap of $73.71 billion, a PE ratio of 29.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 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, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.16. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 16.53%. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. As a group, analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.