Signaturefd LLC Buys 161 Shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 22.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in AptarGroup were worth $142,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in AptarGroup by 281.0% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 192 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new position in AptarGroup in the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of AptarGroup by 4,983.3% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 305 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adirondack Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. 88.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ATR shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of AptarGroup from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $190.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Xiangwei Gong sold 800 shares of AptarGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.56, for a total transaction of $117,248.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 20,174 shares in the company, valued at $2,956,701.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Xiangwei Gong sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.56, for a total transaction of $117,248.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,956,701.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Gael Touya sold 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were 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 $4,876,857.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 17,457 shares of company stock valued at $2,592,110 over the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AptarGroup Price Performance

ATR stock opened at $168.91 on Monday. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $120.36 and a 1 year high of $169.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market cap of $11.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $148.98.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The industrial products company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $910.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $930.15 million. AptarGroup had a return on equity of 15.13% and a net margin of 9.00%. AptarGroup’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that AptarGroup, Inc. will post 5.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 24th. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.63%.

AptarGroup declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, October 10th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.