UBS Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) Stock Price

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) had its target price dropped by research analysts at UBS Group from $395.00 to $370.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. UBS Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 26.34% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets cut Air Products and Chemicals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Air Products and Chemicals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $342.65.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE APD traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $292.86. 99,695 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,585,334. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.00, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.11. Air Products and Chemicals has a 52-week low of $227.53 and a 52-week high of $341.14. The company’s 50-day moving average is $312.38 and its 200-day moving average is $307.60.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Melissa N. Schaeffer sold 3,233 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.32, for a total transaction of $993,565.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,282,177.60. This represents a 23.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Walter L. Nelson sold 589 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.50, for a total value of $181,706.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 719 shares in the company, valued at $221,811.50. This represents a 45.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,500 shares of company stock worth $4,842,604 over the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Air Products and Chemicals

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 106.3% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,494 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,914,000 after purchasing an additional 6,952 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 59.2% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 374,442 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $111,488,000 after purchasing an additional 139,223 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new stake in Air Products and Chemicals in the fourth quarter valued at $7,269,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,074,000 after purchasing an additional 4,916 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1,205.1% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 38,423 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $11,440,000 after purchasing an additional 35,479 shares during 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.