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

StockNews.com lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Thursday morning.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays decreased their price target on 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Air Products and Chemicals from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $240.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, TheStreet lowered Air Products and Chemicals from a b rating to a c+ rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $277.43.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE APD opened at $245.87 on Thursday. Air Products and Chemicals has a 12 month low of $212.24 and a 12 month high of $307.71. The company has a market capitalization of $54.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.19, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $238.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $254.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.58.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 20.32%. The firm’s revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Air Products and Chemicals

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APD. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 167.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,921,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,894,973,000 after acquiring an additional 4,330,471 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $852,288,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,696.4% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 518,197 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $142,344,000 after purchasing an additional 489,350 shares during the last quarter. Scharf Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals in the first quarter valued at approximately $87,173,000. Finally, Morningstar Investment Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 96.4% in the fourth quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 684,057 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $187,589,000 after buying an additional 335,717 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.