Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $331.53.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on APD shares. Barclays raised their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $295.00 to $364.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $308.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Vertical Research raised shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $336.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th.

Institutional Trading of Air Products and Chemicals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 88.7% in the third quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the second quarter worth $32,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the third quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,700.0% in the second quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 144 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

NYSE APD opened at $296.02 on Thursday. Air Products and Chemicals has a 1-year low of $212.24 and a 1-year high of $337.00. The company has a 50 day moving average of $317.38 and a 200-day moving average of $291.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $65.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.23, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.81.

Air Products and Chemicals Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. Air Products and Chemicals’s payout ratio is presently 41.21%.

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.