Alerus Financial NA Cuts Stake in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Alerus Financial NA decreased its position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR - Free Report) by 29.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,790 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,270 shares during the quarter. Alerus Financial NA's holdings in AptarGroup were worth $3,971,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ATR. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in AptarGroup during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of AptarGroup by 281.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 240 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of AptarGroup by 446.5% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 235 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 4,983.3% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 305 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. 88.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of AptarGroup 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 owns 174,118 shares in the company, valued at $29,530,412.80. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Gael Touya sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.62, for a total value of $500,346.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,165 shares in the company, valued at $4,876,857.30. The trade was a 9.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 35,639 shares of company stock valued at $5,960,841. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on ATR. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of AptarGroup from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of AptarGroup from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $215.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of AptarGroup from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AptarGroup currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $195.00.

AptarGroup Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:ATR traded up $1.23 during trading on Friday, hitting $172.96. The stock had a trading volume of 117,313 shares, compared to its average volume of 248,698. 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 $11.51 billion, a PE ratio of 34.73, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.57. The firm's fifty day moving average is $166.75 and its 200 day moving average is $153.83. 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 declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 10th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 24th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. AptarGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.14%.

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.