Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on APD. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $275.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $291.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $300.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $276.00 to $281.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.40.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of APD stock opened at $295.75 on Monday. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12-month low of $212.24 and a 12-month high of $297.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $275.44 and a 200-day moving average of $260.50.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 16.53%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Security National Bank acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 700.0% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 128 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

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.