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

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $330.38.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $330.00 to $282.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th.

Insider Transactions at Air Products and Chemicals

In related news, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Wilbur Mok sold 1,300 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.88, for a total transaction of $410,644.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,193 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,604.84. This represents a 28.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,751 shares of company stock worth $1,812,572 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Air Products and Chemicals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of APD. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $505,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 40.3% in the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $278.78 on Friday. Air Products and Chemicals has a 1 year low of $243.69 and a 1 year 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $275.98 and a 200 day moving average of $300.03. The stock has a market cap of $62.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.85 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.