AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) Coverage Initiated at Raymond James

Research analysts at Raymond James started coverage on shares of AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set an “outperform” rating and a $200.00 price target on the industrial products company’s stock. Raymond James’ target price points to a potential upside of 30.92% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America downgraded shares of AptarGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $173.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday. Dbs Bank raised AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.60.

AptarGroup Price Performance

NYSE:ATR opened at $152.76 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.15. AptarGroup has a one year low of $122.37 and a one year high of $178.03. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $167.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.91. The stock has a market cap of $10.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.67, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at AptarGroup

In related news, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of AptarGroup stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 174,118 shares in the company, valued at $29,530,412.80. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.83, for a total value of $162,752.12. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in AptarGroup by 3.6% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,977 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $317,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Commerce Bank increased its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 2,349 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $376,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in shares of AptarGroup by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 3,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $531,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co boosted its stake in AptarGroup by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 1,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in AptarGroup by 2.3% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 4,585 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $734,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. 88.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.