Brokerages Set Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) PT at $341.47

Shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $340.88.

Several research analysts recently commented on APD shares. StockNews.com cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 14th. Bank of America lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Air Products and Chemicals from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th.

Air Products and Chemicals Price Performance

NYSE:APD opened at $295.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Air Products and Chemicals has a one year low of $227.53 and a one year high of $341.14. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $310.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $309.48. The stock has a market cap of $65.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.13, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.88.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 15.78%. Analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. This is a positive change from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,282,177.60. The trade was a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. This represents a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.