AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) Shares Up 1.3% – Should You Buy?

Shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) traded up 1.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $147.39 and last traded at $147.54. 53,861 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 366,760 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.61.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

AptarGroup Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $9.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a 50 day moving average of $154.05 and a 200 day moving average of $159.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.24. AptarGroup had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 15.56%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AptarGroup, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current year.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AptarGroup

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in AptarGroup in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in AptarGroup by 312.0% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Park Place Capital Corp acquired a new position in shares of AptarGroup during the fourth quarter valued at about $67,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of AptarGroup by 328.4% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 437 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.