Nuance Investments LLC Decreases Stock Position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR)

Nuance Investments LLC cut its stake in shares of AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 20.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 244,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 64,168 shares during the quarter. AptarGroup accounts for about 1.3% of Nuance Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Nuance Investments LLC owned approximately 0.37% of AptarGroup worth $39,188,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of AptarGroup during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in AptarGroup by 281.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in AptarGroup by 446.5% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 235 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of AptarGroup in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of AptarGroup by 4,983.3% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 305 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. 88.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Robert Kuhn sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.18, for a total transaction of $30,036.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,844,599.36. This trade represents a 0.30 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephan B. Tanda sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.60, for a total value of $5,088,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,118 shares in the company, valued at $29,530,412.80. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,499 shares of company stock valued at $6,393,076 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

AptarGroup Price Performance

ATR opened at $166.90 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $11.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.57. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $163.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $152.46. AptarGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.29 and a 12-month high of $178.03.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 24th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.14%.

AptarGroup declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, October 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.