Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on APD. Wolfe Research started coverage on Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $279.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $276.00 to $294.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $245.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $287.29.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of APD opened at $258.05 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $57.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.84. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12 month low of $212.24 and a 12 month high of $307.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $259.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $251.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.70 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 20.32%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.74 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eos Management L.P. grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Eos Management L.P. now owns 27,558 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,545,000 after acquiring an additional 5,727 shares in the last quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA now owns 65,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $17,850,000 after acquiring an additional 2,285 shares in the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter worth about $1,177,000. Zenyatta Capital Management LP grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. Zenyatta Capital Management LP now owns 22,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,024,000 after acquiring an additional 7,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bristol John W & Co. Inc. NY grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 37.6% in the fourth quarter. Bristol John W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 388,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $106,364,000 after acquiring an additional 106,054 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.