Head-To-Head Survey: Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) versus Chemours (NYSE:CC)

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) and Chemours (NYSE:CC) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, profitability, dividends, valuation and institutional ownership.

Dividends

Air Products and Chemicals pays an annual dividend of $7.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. Chemours pays an annual dividend of $0.35 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Air Products and Chemicals pays out 103.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Chemours pays out -12.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Air Products and Chemicals has raised its dividend for 50 consecutive years. Air Products and Chemicals is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Risk and Volatility

Air Products and Chemicals has a beta of 0.81, indicating that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Chemours has a beta of 1.61, indicating that its stock price is 61% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Air Products and Chemicals and Chemours”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Air Products and Chemicals	$12.10 billion	5.34	$3.83 billion	$6.95	41.80
Chemours	$5.78 billion	0.38	$86.00 million	($2.80)	-5.21

Air Products and Chemicals has higher revenue and earnings than Chemours. Chemours is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Air Products and Chemicals, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Air Products and Chemicals and Chemours, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Air Products and Chemicals	1	4	10	1	2.69
Chemours	0	3	5	0	2.63

Air Products and Chemicals currently has a consensus target price of $335.0667, suggesting a potential upside of 15.33%. Chemours has a consensus target price of $17.3750, suggesting a potential upside of 19.09%. Given Chemours’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Chemours is more favorable than Air Products and Chemicals.

Profitability

This table compares Air Products and Chemicals and Chemours’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Air Products and Chemicals	12.86%	15.11%	6.79%
Chemours	-7.19%	35.14%	2.45%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

81.7% of Air Products and Chemicals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 76.3% of Chemours shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Air Products and Chemicals shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Chemours shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Air Products and Chemicals beats Chemours on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. It also designs and manufactures equipment for air separation, hydrocarbon recovery and purification, natural gas liquefaction, and liquid helium and liquid hydrogen transport and storage. The company was founded in 1940 and is headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

About Chemours

The Chemours Company provides performance chemicals in North America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. It operates through three segments: Titanium Technologies, Thermal & Specialized Solutions, and Advanced Performance Materials. The Titanium Technologies segment provides TiO2 pigment under the Ti-Pure brand for delivering whiteness, brightness, opacity, durability, efficiency, and protection in various of applications, such as architectural and industrial coatings, flexible and rigid plastic packaging, polyvinylchloride, laminate papers used for furniture and building materials, coated paper, and coated paperboard used for packaging. The Thermal & Specialized Solutions segment offers of refrigerants, thermal management solutions, propellants, foam blowing agents, and specialty solvents. The Advanced Performance Materials segment products portfolio includes various industrial resins, specialty products, membranes, and coatings for electronics, communications, transportation, wire and cable, energy, oil and gas, and medical, and other applications under the eflon, Viton, Krytox, and Nafion brands. The company sells its products through direct and indirect channels, as well as through a network of resellers and distributors. The Chemours Company was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware.