Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has received an average analyst rating of "Moderate Buy", with a target price of $334.75.
• The company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a 1.2% year-over-year revenue increase.
• A quarterly dividend of $1.79 is set to be paid on November 10th, with a current dividend yield of 2.5%.

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seventeen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $334.75.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on APD. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $290.00 price target for the company. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $355.00 price target for the company.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock traded down $6.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $281.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,072,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 934,039. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $284.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $290.65. Air Products and Chemicals has a one year low of $243.69 and a one year high of $341.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market cap of $62.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.56, a P/E/G ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 12.86% and a return on equity of 15.11%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.20 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio is presently 104.07%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of APD. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter worth $26,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter worth $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 46.7% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 110 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Citizens National Bank Trust Department increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 833.3% in the first quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 112 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. 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.