Raymond James Financial Issues Positive Forecast for AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) Stock Price

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR - Free Report) had its price target increased by Raymond James Financial from $175.00 to $182.00 in a report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the industrial products company's stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AptarGroup from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $170.00 price objective (up from $162.00) on shares of AptarGroup in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $180.00.

AptarGroup Price Performance

NYSE:ATR traded up $0.92 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $155.90. 397,671 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 324,997. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $10.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.57. AptarGroup has a 12 month low of $130.85 and a 12 month high of $178.03. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $155.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $151.42.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.04. AptarGroup had a return on equity of 15.10% and a net margin of 10.41%. The business had revenue of $887.31 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $894.26 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.26 EPS. The company's revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that AptarGroup will post 5.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 24th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. AptarGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AptarGroup

In other news, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 1,671 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.79, for a total transaction of $255,312.09. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,088 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,694,135.52. This represents a 13.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Hedi Tlili sold 3,614 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.96, for a total value of $563,639.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,379 shares in the company, valued at $1,462,748.84. The trade was a 27.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 45,680 shares of company stock worth $6,983,798 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AptarGroup

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATR. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new position in AptarGroup in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Simplex Trading LLC boosted its holdings in AptarGroup by 107.4% during the first quarter. Simplex Trading LLC now owns 224 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of AptarGroup by 155.0% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 278 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of AptarGroup by 281.9% in the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 317 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 164.8% in the second quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 331 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.52% of the company's stock.

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.