Citigroup Inc. Boosts Stock Position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,229 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,060 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in AptarGroup were worth $5,804,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 43.9% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,066,000 after purchasing an additional 12,271 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in AptarGroup by 88.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 230,775 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,968,000 after acquiring an additional 108,175 shares in the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in AptarGroup by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,263 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,406,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC purchased a new position in shares of AptarGroup during the third quarter worth approximately $356,000. Finally, EULAV Asset Management raised its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 26.7% during the third quarter. EULAV Asset Management now owns 229,526 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,768,000 after acquiring an additional 48,399 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.60, for a total value of $5,088,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 174,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,530,412.80. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Gael Touya sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,639 shares of company stock worth $5,960,841. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

AptarGroup Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:ATR opened at $172.96 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.51 billion, a PE ratio of 34.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.29 and a 12-month high of $178.03. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $166.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.88.

AptarGroup announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, October 10th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 24th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.