Glass Lewis supports Airgas in Air Products fight

NEW YORK, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Airgas (ARG.N) on Tuesday won the support of risk advisory firm Glass Lewis & Co in its proxy battle with Air Products and Chemicals Inc (APD.N).

Air Products has launched a hostile bid for Airgas, a rival industrial gas company.

Air Products on Monday it raised its bid for Airgas to $5.5 billion, or $65.50 a share, from its previous offer of $63.50 per share. It also nominated three candidates to the Airgas board.

Airgas, which has called previous offers "grossly inadequate," is scheduled to hold an annual meeting on Sept. 15.

Glass Lewis said it does not believe that Air Products' offer is the best option for Airgas shareholders, and that they should support incumbent directors.

"Airgas has provided substantial quantitative analysis to support the board's believe that Air Product's offer undervalues the Company and that its prospects are strong," Glass Lewis said in a report.

The report also noted that 8 of 9 members of the Airgas board were independent.

"In our opinion, Airgas shareholders should support the incumbent directors on the basis of their solid track record of shareholder value creation and the rigorous analysis of the industry recovery and the company's future prospects," it said.

Air Products had proposed the election of John Clancey, chairman emeritus of shipping company Maersk; Robert Lumpkins, board chairman of fertilizer producer Mosaic (MOS.N); and Ted Miller, former chief executive of wireless communication provider Crown Castle International Corp (CCI.N).

Air Products has said that if Airgas shareholders do not elect its three nominees to the board at the meeting, it would terminate the offer and pursue "other attractive growth opportunities." (Reporting by Ritsuko Ando and Ernest Scheyder; editing by Carol Bishopric)