Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Receives $340.50 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $339.94.

APD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup increased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised Air Products and Chemicals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.3 %

APD stock opened at $309.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $68.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $309.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $302.26. Air Products and Chemicals has a fifty-two week low of $216.30 and a fifty-two week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. As a group, analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $1.79 dividend. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, insider Francesco Maione sold 2,016 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total value of $616,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,173,204. This represents a 34.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total value of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,749 shares of company stock valued at $3,030,032. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in APD. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 6.9% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 45,287 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $13,484,000 after purchasing an additional 2,925 shares in the last quarter. Abner Herrman & Brock LLC grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 1.0% during the third quarter. Abner Herrman & Brock LLC now owns 34,934 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,401,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 9.2% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,503 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 2.2% in the third quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC now owns 12,672 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,773,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Advisors LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.6% in the third quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 9,493 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,826,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.