Great Lakes Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 99,092 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,164 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $18,543,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AVY. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Avery Dennison by 485.2% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 35,630 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,715,000 after buying an additional 29,541 shares during the period. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Avery Dennison by 553.5% during the 3rd quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $693,000 after buying an additional 2,657 shares during the period. Meyer Handelman Co. purchased a new stake in Avery Dennison during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,263,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Avery Dennison by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 420,232 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $92,771,000 after buying an additional 46,390 shares during the period. Finally, Unigestion Holding SA purchased a new stake in Avery Dennison during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,701,000. 94.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Avery Dennison Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE AVY opened at $177.24 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $185.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $200.08. Avery Dennison Co. has a 52 week low of $177.06 and a 52 week high of $233.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.00 billion, a PE ratio of 20.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 40.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets set a $226.00 target price on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 target price on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 price target (down previously from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.51.

Avery Dennison 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.