AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR – Get Rating) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage issued a buy rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on ATR. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. TheStreet raised shares of AptarGroup from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Tuesday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $121.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $122.33.

AptarGroup Trading Down 1.7 %

NYSE:ATR opened at $110.76 on Thursday. AptarGroup has a 52 week low of $90.23 and a 52 week high of $122.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $113.82 and a 200 day moving average of $106.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.94, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.63.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 17th. The industrial products company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.13. AptarGroup had a net margin of 7.20% and a return on equity of 12.78%. The company had revenue of $795.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $775.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.93 earnings per share. AptarGroup’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AptarGroup will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 2nd were paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 1st. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. AptarGroup’s payout ratio is currently 42.46%.

Insider Transactions at AptarGroup

In other news, CFO Robert Kuhn sold 64,560 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.04, for a total value of $7,362,422.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 54,044 shares in the company, valued at $6,163,177.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Maritza Gomez Montiel sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.67, for a total transaction of $172,005.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,024 shares in the company, valued at $461,432.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Robert Kuhn sold 64,560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.04, for a total transaction of $7,362,422.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 54,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,163,177.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AptarGroup

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in AptarGroup by 175.3% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 903 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its position in shares of AptarGroup by 9.4% in the fourth quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 10,474 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,152,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in shares of AptarGroup by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 33,565 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,691,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of AptarGroup by 126.1% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,142 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares during the period. Finally, CI Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the fourth quarter valued at about $7,945,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.37% of the company’s stock.

AptarGroup Company Profile

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AptarGroup, Inc engages in the design, manufacture, drug delivery, consumer product dispensing, sealing and active packaging solutions, and services for the prescription drug, consumer health care, injectable, active packaging, beauty, personal care, home care, and food and beverages industries. It operates through the following segments: Pharma, Beauty and Home, and Food and Beverage.