Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation, eleven have issued 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 $330.94.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on APD shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $335.00 to $324.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $290.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $355.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of APD. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $945,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $246,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,831 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $821,000 after buying an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 26.9% during the fourth quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 958 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $278,000 after buying an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 312.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 198 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APD opened at $291.84 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $64.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.42, a P/E/G ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals has a 52 week low of $243.69 and a 52 week high of $341.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $276.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $290.28.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.14). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 12.76% and a return on equity of 15.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.85 EPS. Air Products and Chemicals’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 104.07%.

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.