Raymond James Trust N.A. Sells 163 Shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Raymond James Trust N.A. lowered its holdings in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 6.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,199 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 163 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A.’s holdings in AptarGroup were worth $352,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 43.9% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,066,000 after acquiring an additional 12,271 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of AptarGroup by 88.2% during 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 purchasing an additional 108,175 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,263 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,406,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $356,000. Finally, EULAV Asset Management grew its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 26.7% in the third quarter. EULAV Asset Management now owns 229,526 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,768,000 after buying an additional 48,399 shares in the last quarter. 88.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on ATR. 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 research note on Monday, October 28th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on AptarGroup from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AptarGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $195.00.

Insider Activity at AptarGroup

In related news, insider Gael Touya sold 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.62, for a total transaction of $500,346.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,876,857.30. This trade represents a 9.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.60, for a total transaction of $5,088,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,530,412.80. This represents a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,639 shares of company stock worth $5,960,841 in the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AptarGroup Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of ATR stock opened at $171.82 on Thursday. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.29 and a 12-month high of $178.03. The company has a market capitalization of $11.43 billion, a PE ratio of 34.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $166.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $153.49. 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 Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 24th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. AptarGroup’s payout ratio is currently 36.14%.

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