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

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

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Wolfe Research started coverage on 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. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $305.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Barclays lowered their price target on Air Products and Chemicals from $260.00 to $245.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $264.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Argus cut Air Products and Chemicals from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $276.36.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE APD opened at $227.76 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $235.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $258.18. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $50.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.73, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.81. Air Products and Chemicals has a one year low of $212.24 and a one year high of $307.71.

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

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.11%. Air Products and Chemicals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.56%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Air Products and Chemicals

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 211.6% in the first quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 8,138 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,972,000 after acquiring an additional 5,526 shares during the last quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 103.9% in the first quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 4,323 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,047,000 after acquiring an additional 2,203 shares during the last quarter. New England Research & Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 25.5% in the first quarter. New England Research & Management Inc. now owns 10,105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,448,000 after acquiring an additional 2,050 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 47.8% in the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,497 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 35.9% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,595 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $629,000 after acquiring an additional 686 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

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.