AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) Short Interest Update

AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 529,200 shares, a growth of 25.2% from the November 30th total of 422,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 282,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days.

AptarGroup Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE ATR opened at $156.73 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $168.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $156.58. AptarGroup has a one year low of $122.29 and a one year high of $178.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.62. The firm has a market cap of $10.43 billion, a PE ratio of 31.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.58.

AptarGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 10th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

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 dividend yield of 1.15%. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Dbs Bank raised shares of AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Jefferies Financial Group raised AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of AptarGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.60, for a total transaction of $5,088,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 174,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,530,412.80. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.83, for a total transaction of $162,752.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,324,977.84. This represents a 10.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of AptarGroup

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ATR. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 28.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 69,670 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,648,000 after buying an additional 15,244 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of AptarGroup by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,492 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,962,000 after purchasing an additional 2,091 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of AptarGroup during the 3rd quarter worth $126,000. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 8,263 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,324,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,515,288 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $245,444,000 after purchasing an additional 83,452 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

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.