Lazard Asset Management LLC Buys 3,390 Shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 13.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,709 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,390 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AptarGroup were worth $4,352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ATR. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC lifted its position in AptarGroup by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 2,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $410,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 174.0% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 3,628 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $570,000 after buying an additional 2,304 shares during the period. West Coast Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 21,787 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,423,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AptarGroup during the 4th quarter valued at $858,000. Finally, Albert D Mason Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 10,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,611,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. 88.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on AptarGroup from $185.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company restated 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. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price objective on AptarGroup from $190.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $178.60.

Insider Transactions at AptarGroup

In related news, insider Shiela Vinczeller sold 995 shares of AptarGroup stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.42, for a total value of $151,657.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 26,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,008,798.42. This trade represents a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 11,329 shares of AptarGroup stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.39, for a total value of $1,726,426.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 204,986 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,237,816.54. This represents a 5.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,095 shares of company stock valued at $4,565,770. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AptarGroup Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of ATR stock opened at $154.99 on Friday. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $130.85 and a 52-week high of $178.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.24 billion, a PE ratio of 27.98, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $147.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.42.

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.04. AptarGroup had a return on equity of 15.56% and a net margin of 10.45%. The firm had revenue of $887.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $894.26 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that AptarGroup, Inc. will post 5.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 1st. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.16%. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.85%.

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.