16,000 Shares in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) Acquired by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 16,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,514,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in AptarGroup during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Park Place Capital Corp purchased a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the fourth quarter valued at $67,000. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 328.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 437 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in AptarGroup by 310.4% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 591 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in AptarGroup by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 650 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.52% of the company's stock.

AptarGroup Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of ATR stock traded down $2.53 on Friday, hitting $146.83. The stock had a trading volume of 239,805 shares, compared to its average volume of 303,562. The stock's 50 day moving average is $149.69 and its 200-day moving average is $158.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.50, 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.38.

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AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.24. AptarGroup had a return on equity of 15.56% and a net margin of 10.45%. As a group, research analysts expect that AptarGroup, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current year.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. AptarGroup's payout ratio is 32.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ATR shares. Bank of America lowered shares of AptarGroup from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $173.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 6th. 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. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $185.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and set a $190.00 price objective (down from $200.00) on shares of AptarGroup in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut AptarGroup from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AptarGroup currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $181.60.

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.