AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) Stock Holdings Lifted by Eagle Asset Management Inc.

Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 43.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,271 shares during the quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of AptarGroup worth $7,066,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATR. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the third quarter worth $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in AptarGroup by 281.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 446.5% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 235 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 4,983.3% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 305 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at AptarGroup

In other AptarGroup news, insider Gael Touya sold 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.62, for a total value of $500,346.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 32,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,876,857.30. This trade represents a 9.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.83, for a total value of $162,752.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,848 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,324,977.84. This represents a 10.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,639 shares of company stock worth $5,960,841 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ATR shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of AptarGroup from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Dbs Bank upgraded AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $195.00.

AptarGroup Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ATR opened at $171.51 on Monday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $164.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.62. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.29 and a 52 week high of $178.03. The firm has a market cap of $11.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.57.

AptarGroup announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, October 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 24th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 24th. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.14%.

About AptarGroup

AptarGroup, Inc designs and manufactures a range of drug delivery, consumer product dispensing, and active material science solutions and services for the pharmaceutical, beauty, personal care, home care, and food and beverage markets. The company operates through Aptar Pharma, Aptar Beauty, and Aptar Closures segments.