AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) Now Covered by Analysts at Raymond James

Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm issued an outperform rating and a $200.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on ATR. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on AptarGroup from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $215.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America downgraded shares of AptarGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $173.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday. Finally, Dbs Bank raised AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AptarGroup presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $190.60.

AptarGroup Stock Up 0.3 %

ATR stock opened at $153.82 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $166.30 and a 200 day moving average of $156.91. The firm has a market cap of $10.24 billion, a PE ratio of 30.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.59. AptarGroup has a twelve month low of $122.97 and a twelve month high of $178.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

AptarGroup announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, October 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.83, for a total transaction of $162,752.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,324,977.84. This represents a 10.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.60, for a total transaction of $5,088,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,530,412.80. The trade was a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AptarGroup

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ATR. Congress Asset Management Co. bought a new stake in AptarGroup during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $108,239,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 111.0% in the second quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,075,168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $151,394,000 after purchasing an additional 565,511 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AptarGroup by 29.4% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,106,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $337,502,000 after purchasing an additional 479,193 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 182.1% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 538,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $86,315,000 after buying an additional 347,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in AptarGroup by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,864,198 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $298,626,000 after buying an additional 214,097 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

AptarGroup Company Profile

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.