AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $146.91 and last traded at $146.4160, with a volume of 100,083 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $142.31.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ATR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AptarGroup in a report on Monday. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $160.00 target price on shares of AptarGroup in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of AptarGroup from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AptarGroup in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of AptarGroup in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AptarGroup presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $164.14.

AptarGroup Trading Up 1.9%

The company has a 50-day moving average of $126.22 and a 200 day moving average of $127.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $9.19 billion, a PE ratio of 35.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.33.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $980.76 million. AptarGroup had a return on equity of 13.11% and a net margin of 6.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.62 earnings per share. Analysts predict that AptarGroup, Inc. will post 5.48 earnings per share for the current year.

AptarGroup Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. This is a boost from AptarGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. AptarGroup’s payout ratio is currently 46.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AptarGroup news, CEO Gael Touya sold 3,740 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.76, for a total transaction of $500,262.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 29,102 shares in the company, valued at $3,892,683.52. The trade was a 11.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Shiela Vinczeller sold 765 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.37, for a total transaction of $99,733.05. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 26,313 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,430,425.81. This represents a 2.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.73% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AptarGroup

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in AptarGroup in the 2nd quarter worth about $768,464,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of AptarGroup by 15.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,504,473 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $189,581,000 after buying an additional 203,672 shares during the period. Atlas FRM LLC bought a new position in shares of AptarGroup during the second quarter valued at approximately $83,884,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 42.6% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 538,554 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,868,000 after buying an additional 160,763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 7.2% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 485,718 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,210,000 after buying an additional 32,420 shares during the last quarter. 88.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AptarGroup Company Profile

AptarGroup, Inc (NYSE: ATR) develops and manufactures dispensing, sealing and delivery systems for the pharmaceutical, beauty, personal care, food and beverage markets. Its products are designed to control, protect and dispense a wide range of liquids, creams, lotions, fragrances and other formulations.

The company’s offerings include pumps, valves, closures, aerosol systems and other dispensing components, as well as drug-delivery technologies. Through its pharmaceutical business, Aptar supports nasal, pulmonary, ophthalmic, dermal and injectable applications, serving pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with components and systems used in prescription, over-the-counter and consumer health products.

Aptar serves customers internationally through manufacturing, research and development and commercial operations across North America, Europe, Asia and other global markets.