Entropy Technologies LP Takes $1.04 Million Position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 6,502 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,042,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 42.9% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc increased its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 42.5% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 4,299 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $689,000 after purchasing an additional 1,283 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in AptarGroup during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in AptarGroup in the 3rd quarter valued at about $204,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 40.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 37,849 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $6,345,000 after buying an additional 10,815 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.52% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

AptarGroup Stock Down 0.8 %

AptarGroup stock traded down $1.35 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $174.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 198,168 shares, compared to its average volume of 291,039. The company has a market cap of $11.59 billion, a PE ratio of 34.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.57. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.29 and a 52-week high of $178.03. The firm's 50 day moving average is $162.49 and its 200 day moving average is $151.92.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 24th. AptarGroup's payout ratio is currently 36.14%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AptarGroup news, insider Shiela Vinczeller sold 1,660 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.15, for a total value of $250,909.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,651 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,423,698.65. The trade was a 6.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of AptarGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,530,412.80. The trade was a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 37,535 shares of company stock valued at $6,230,324 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.