Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) Lifted to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Monday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. UBS Group lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a buy rating to a neutral rating and cut their target price for the stock from $328.00 to $241.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $304.00 to $295.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Argus downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $240.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $276.36.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of APD stock opened at $234.72 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.81. Air Products and Chemicals has a 1 year low of $212.24 and a 1 year high of $307.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $236.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $256.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.18 billion, a PE ratio of 22.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 8,979 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,175,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 52.5% in the 1st quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,941 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. Conscious Wealth Investments LLC raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Conscious Wealth Investments LLC now owns 10,621 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,419,000 after acquiring an additional 580 shares in the last quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. raised its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,258 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $305,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 7,543 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,827,000 after buying an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. 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.