Airgas

More must be said about Air Products versus Airgas.

AP is now offering to buy its rival at $63.50 a share, but the market is valuing Airgas at a premium above that. You can see this for yourself in the chart nearby, reproducing the trading from Friday, July 9.

Both companies provide gas to industrial and commercial users. Among others, these users include refineries, which remove sulfur from crude oil, by saturating the fuel with hydrogen first, producing hydrogen sulfide, which can then be removed from the mix. ARG is also apparently involved in the liquefaction of natural gas.

Airgas, based in Radnor, Pennsylvania, has said this: "This Board has unanimously concluded that Air Products’ unsolicited tender offer and proxy solicitation for its hand-picked nominees are an opportunistic attempt to advance Air Products’ goal of transferring the value of Airgas to Air Products at a grossly inadequate price.

"The Board continues to recommend that stockholders reject the Air Products offer."

Here is what BusinessWeek has to say.