Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) Stock Position Increased by Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC

Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 15.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,340 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AVY. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,088,516 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $459,621,000 after buying an additional 157,754 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 764,591 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $143,078,000 after purchasing an additional 134,560 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 2,629.0% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 91,857 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,278,000 after purchasing an additional 88,491 shares during the last quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 135.6% during the fourth quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 146,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,476,000 after purchasing an additional 84,501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter valued at $12,730,000. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Avery Dennison stock opened at $178.91 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $185.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $199.64. The company has a market cap of $14.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. Avery Dennison Co. has a 1 year low of $174.91 and a 1 year high of $233.48.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by ($0.01). Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 33.06% and a net margin of 8.05%. As a group, analysts expect that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on AVY. Bank of America reduced their target price on Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 target price (down from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets set a $226.00 target price on Avery Dennison in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Avery Dennison from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $210.00 to $205.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $222.51.

Insider Transactions at Avery Dennison

In other news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.85, for a total transaction of $2,358,412.65. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 303,331 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,160,742.35. This represents a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Company Profile

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.