AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) Short Interest Up 25.0% in February

AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) saw a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 756,500 shares, an increase of 25.0% from the February 13th total of 605,000 shares. Approximately 1.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 358,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.1 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ATR shares. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price objective (down previously from $200.00) on shares of AptarGroup in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on AptarGroup from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America lowered AptarGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $173.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com lowered AptarGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on AptarGroup from $185.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AptarGroup

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ATR. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in AptarGroup in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in AptarGroup by 312.0% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the period. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new position in AptarGroup in the 4th quarter worth $67,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in AptarGroup by 328.4% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 437 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in AptarGroup in the 4th quarter worth $75,000. 88.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AptarGroup Stock Down 1.1 %

ATR traded down $1.57 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $146.27. 219,932 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 289,123. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.56. AptarGroup has a 12-month low of $135.96 and a 12-month high of $178.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $151.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $159.01.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.24. AptarGroup had a return on equity of 15.56% and a net margin of 10.45%. Analysts predict that AptarGroup will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.49%.

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.