Verition Fund Management LLC Acquires 7,939 Shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR - Free Report) by 36.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,016 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 7,939 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC's holdings in AptarGroup were worth $4,808,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in AptarGroup during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in 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 buying an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in AptarGroup by 281.0% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 240 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC acquired a new position in AptarGroup during the second quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. 88.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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 owns 174,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,530,412.80. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Gael Touya sold 3,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.62, for a total transaction of $500,346.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,876,857.30. This trade represents a 9.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,639 shares of company stock valued at $5,960,841 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of AptarGroup from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of AptarGroup from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on AptarGroup from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AptarGroup presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $195.00.

AptarGroup Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE ATR traded down $0.36 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $172.40. The stock had a trading volume of 160,049 shares, compared to its average volume of 237,705. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $167.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.23. 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 $11.47 billion, a PE ratio of 34.62, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.58.

AptarGroup announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, October 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 24th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. AptarGroup's payout ratio is presently 36.14%.

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.