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

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

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on APD. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $279.00 target price for the company. UBS Group cut shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $328.00 to $241.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $304.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $245.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $276.36.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE APD opened at $233.78 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $236.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.46. The company has a market capitalization of $51.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals has a 1-year low of $212.24 and a 1-year high of $307.71.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by ($0.18). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 18.82% and a return on equity of 16.84%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at $376,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter worth $1,177,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter worth $501,000. Zenyatta Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 46.7% in the 4th quarter. Zenyatta Capital Management LP now owns 22,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,024,000 after purchasing an additional 7,000 shares during the period. Finally, Bristol John W & Co. Inc. NY boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. Bristol John W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 388,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $106,364,000 after purchasing an additional 106,054 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.