KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes $2.51 Million Position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 16,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,514,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in AptarGroup in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of AptarGroup in the fourth quarter worth $67,000. Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in AptarGroup by 328.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 437 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in AptarGroup by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 650 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

AptarGroup Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE ATR opened at $148.45 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $9.87 billion, a PE ratio of 26.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.56. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $150.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.71. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $135.96 and a 12-month high of $178.03.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 EPS 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, sell-side analysts forecast that AptarGroup, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. AptarGroup’s payout ratio is 32.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ATR. Bank of America downgraded AptarGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $173.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $185.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of AptarGroup from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 target price (down previously from $200.00) on shares of AptarGroup in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of AptarGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AptarGroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.60.

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.