Short Interest in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) Expands By 19.0%

AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 629,600 shares, a growth of 19.0% from the December 15th total of 529,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 279,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATR has been the subject of several research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of AptarGroup from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James began coverage on shares of AptarGroup in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Dbs Bank raised shares of AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, 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. One research analyst has 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 MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $190.60.

AptarGroup Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE ATR traded down $0.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $156.08. The company had a trading volume of 231,872 shares, compared to its average volume of 254,875. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $164.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $157.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.62. The company has a market capitalization of $10.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.34, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.59. AptarGroup has a 12-month low of $126.31 and a 12-month high of $178.03.

AptarGroup declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, October 10th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at AptarGroup

In related news, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 964 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.83, for a total value of $162,752.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,848 shares in the company, valued at $1,324,977.84. This represents a 10.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AptarGroup

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in AptarGroup by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,157 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,268,000 after buying an additional 5,248 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in AptarGroup by 43.8% during 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 last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in AptarGroup by 43.9% during 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 last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in AptarGroup by 5.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,515,288 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $245,444,000 after purchasing an additional 83,452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in AptarGroup by 29.4% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,106,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $337,502,000 after purchasing an additional 479,193 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

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.