Teacher Retirement System of Texas Boosts Holdings in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its position in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 34.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,782 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $12,319,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Greenleaf Trust lifted its position in Avery Dennison by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,352 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 11,862 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,220,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Cynosure Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 3.6% in the third quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $378,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RMR Wealth Builders raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 1,097 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $205,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on AVY. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $235.00 to $207.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. BMO Capital Markets set a $226.00 target price on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 target price on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 target price (down previously from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $222.51.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,068 shares of Avery Dennison stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.19, for a total value of $1,502,180.92. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 316,300 shares in the company, valued at $58,891,897. This trade represents a 2.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Down 1.3 %

AVY stock opened at $174.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $13.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $184.59 and its 200 day moving average is $198.19. Avery Dennison Co. has a one year low of $173.02 and a one year high of $233.48.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last announced 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current year.

Avery Dennison Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.37%.

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.