Moody Aldrich Partners LLC Makes New $299,000 Investment in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Moody Aldrich Partners LLC acquired a new position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,906 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $299,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in AptarGroup by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,157 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,268,000 after buying an additional 5,248 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in AptarGroup by 43.8% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 113,503 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $18,182,000 after purchasing an additional 34,573 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in AptarGroup by 5.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,515,288 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $245,444,000 after acquiring an additional 83,452 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 43.9% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,202 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,066,000 after purchasing an additional 12,271 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 29.4% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,106,885 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $337,502,000 after acquiring an additional 479,193 shares in the last quarter. 88.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ATR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Dbs Bank upgraded AptarGroup from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of AptarGroup from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of AptarGroup from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of AptarGroup from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $173.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $190.60.

Insider Activity at AptarGroup

In other AptarGroup news, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 964 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.83, for a total value of $162,752.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,848 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,324,977.84. This represents a 10.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AptarGroup Trading Up 0.7 %

ATR stock traded up $1.07 on Thursday, hitting $158.18. 274,219 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 274,780. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.59. The business's fifty day moving average is $162.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $158.46. AptarGroup, Inc. has a twelve month low of $128.05 and a twelve month high of $178.03. 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 Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. AptarGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.14%.

AptarGroup announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program 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 programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.