02:15 AM EDT, 05/01/2024 (MT Newswires) -- CFRA, an independent research provider, has provided MT Newswires with the following research alert. Analysts at CFRA have summarized their opinion as follows:

We decrease our 12-month target by $15 to $297, or 24.1x our FY24 (Sep.) EPS estimate, in line with APD's three-year avg. forward P/E. We trim our FY24 EPS estimate by $0.18 to $12.32 and keep FY25's at $13.85. APD posts FQ2 adj. EPS of $2.85 vs. $2.74, $0.15 above consensus; sales missed by 4%. The adj. EBITDA margin in FQ2 expanded 490 basis points Y/Y to 40.9%, driven by higher pricing, lower costs, and a 250 basis point increase from lower energy cost pass-through. The quarter benefitted from robust on-site activities, driven by strong demand for hydrogen and contributions from new assets. FQ2 volume declined 2% Y/Y due to weak demand for merchant products, but this was partly offset by pricing up 1%. We were disappointed with FQ3 guidance but we think it is mostly driven by major plant turnarounds in Europe and the U.S. We forecast a strong finish to the year, with 14% growth in FQ4 adj. EPS driven by new assets coming on-stream. We expect the double-digit EPS growth momentum to continue throughout FY25.