Geode Capital Management LLC Has $245.44 Million Holdings in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 5.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,515,288 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 83,452 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in AptarGroup were worth $245,444,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Natixis Advisors LLC raised 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 worth $18,182,000 after buying an additional 34,573 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 43.9% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,066,000 after acquiring an additional 12,271 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in AptarGroup by 35.9% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 805,301 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $113,395,000 after acquiring an additional 212,886 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in AptarGroup by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 646,912 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $91,092,000 after purchasing an additional 12,533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in AptarGroup by 29.4% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,106,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $337,502,000 after purchasing an additional 479,193 shares in the last quarter. 88.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AptarGroup Stock Performance

Shares of ATR opened at $170.20 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $169.33 and a 200 day moving average of $155.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.29 and a 12 month high of $178.03. The company has a market capitalization of $11.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.18, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.58.

AptarGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 24th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 24th. AptarGroup’s payout ratio is 36.14%.

AptarGroup declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, October 10th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ATR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of AptarGroup from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded shares of AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AptarGroup presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kimberly Chainey sold 964 shares of AptarGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.83, for a total value of $162,752.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,324,977.84. The trade was a 10.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.60, for a total value of $5,088,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 174,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,530,412.80. The trade was a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.