Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) Upgraded at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a report released on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $205.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $210.00.

AVY has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America cut their price target on Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $258.00 to $245.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $235.00 to $207.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $228.96.

Avery Dennison Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVY opened at $185.85 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $193.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $205.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.31, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.89. Avery Dennison has a one year low of $179.20 and a one year high of $233.48.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.39 by ($0.01). Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 33.01% and a net margin of 7.76%. Analysts forecast that Avery Dennison will post 9.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is currently 40.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nicholas Colisto sold 3,679 shares of Avery Dennison stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $757,874.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,467,956. The trade was a 34.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Avery Dennison

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 142 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in Avery Dennison during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Regents Gate Capital LLP acquired a new position in shares of Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Avery Dennison during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 1,400.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 255 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

About Avery Dennison

Avery Dennison Corporation operates as a materials science and digital identification solutions company in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, Latin, America, and internationally. It provides pressure-sensitive materials comprising papers, plastic films, metal foils, and fabrics; performance tapes products, including tapes for wire harnessing, as well as cable wrapping for automotive, electrical, and general industrial applications; mechanical fasteners, which are precision-extruded and injection-molded plastic devices used in various automotive, general industrial, and retail applications; and other pressure-sensitive adhesive-based materials and converted products under the Fasson, JAC, Yongle, and Avery Dennison brands.