Mizuho Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) Stock

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) had its price objective lifted by analysts at Mizuho from $310.00 to $325.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Mizuho’s price target points to a potential upside of 12.40% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $328.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays reduced 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $331.53.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:APD opened at $289.14 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $280.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $290.14. The company has a market cap of $64.35 billion, a PE ratio of 42.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12 month low of $243.69 and a 12 month high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.14). The firm 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 12.76% and a return on equity of 15.48%. The firm’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.85 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Air Products and Chemicals

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,485,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,231,560,000 after purchasing an additional 207,404 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 31.5% during the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 8,759,722 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,583,417,000 after purchasing an additional 2,096,568 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 129.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,429,147 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,574,670,000 after buying an additional 3,062,157 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,931,661 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,430,354,000 after buying an additional 57,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mantle Ridge LP purchased a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth $1,191,344,000. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

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.