AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR – Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 568,100 shares, a drop of 12.9% from the March 15th total of 652,100 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 213,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days. Approximately 0.9% of the company’s shares are sold short.
AptarGroup Stock Performance
ATR stock traded up $1.56 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $120.59. The company had a trading volume of 361,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 216,363. The firm has a market cap of $7.89 billion, a PE ratio of 33.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.39 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.56. AptarGroup has a 12 month low of $90.23 and a 12 month high of $121.28. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $115.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $109.31.
AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 17th. The industrial products company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.13. AptarGroup had a net margin of 7.20% and a return on equity of 12.78%. The business had revenue of $795.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $775.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that AptarGroup will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ATR shares. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of AptarGroup from $132.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of AptarGroup in a report on Thursday, March 16th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. TheStreet upgraded shares of AptarGroup from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of AptarGroup from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, AptarGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.00.
Insider Activity
In other news, CFO Robert Kuhn sold 64,560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.04, for a total transaction of $7,362,422.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 54,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,163,177.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Robert Kuhn sold 64,560 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.04, for a total transaction of $7,362,422.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 54,044 shares in the company, valued at $6,163,177.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Maritza Gomez Montiel sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.67, for a total transaction of $172,005.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $461,432.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On AptarGroup
Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in AptarGroup by 866.4% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,913,980 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $430,460,000 after acquiring an additional 3,508,965 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in AptarGroup by 5.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,159,250 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $300,224,000 after acquiring an additional 171,060 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in AptarGroup by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,981,210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $327,950,000 after buying an additional 97,888 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its stake in AptarGroup by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,383,650 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $163,534,000 after buying an additional 132,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in AptarGroup by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,124,904 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $124,466,000 after buying an additional 20,787 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.37% of the company’s stock.
About AptarGroup
AptarGroup, Inc engages in the design, manufacture, drug delivery, consumer product dispensing, sealing and active packaging solutions, and services for the prescription drug, consumer health care, injectable, active packaging, beauty, personal care, home care, and food and beverages industries. It operates through the following segments: Pharma, Beauty and Home, and Food and Beverage.