O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 10,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 147 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AptarGroup were worth $1,697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in AptarGroup by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 650 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 961 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $154,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management raised its holdings in AptarGroup by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 16,683 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,621,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its position in AptarGroup by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 18,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,906,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in AptarGroup by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,079 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

AptarGroup Price Performance

AptarGroup stock opened at $140.09 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.32 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.56. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.96 and a 52 week high of $178.03. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.49. 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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, equities research analysts predict that AptarGroup, Inc. will post 5.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. AptarGroup’s payout ratio is 32.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

AptarGroup 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.