AptarGroup upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at William Blair

William Blair upgraded AptarGroup to Outperform from Market Perform. The company’s Q1 earnings beat estimates, driven by strength in proprietary delivery systems, injectables returning to growth, and the beginning of a recovery in North American consumer markets, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm believes AptarGroup’s actions to make its Beauty and Closures segments more efficient while investing in the higher-growth and higher-margin Pharma segment are yielding a “faster-growing and more profitable business with better visibility and steadier earnings-characteristics not yet reflected in the stock.”