Fmr LLC Sells 361,534 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Fmr LLC lessened its stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 39.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 559,943 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 361,534 shares during the quarter. Fmr LLC owned approximately 0.70% of Avery Dennison worth $104,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Unigestion Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. Unigestion Holding SA now owns 42,260 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,908,000 after acquiring an additional 11,905 shares in the last quarter. Aviva PLC grew its position in Avery Dennison by 1,469.6% in the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 48,564 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,088,000 after purchasing an additional 45,470 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,474,000. Smith Moore & CO. lifted its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Smith Moore & CO. now owns 4,720 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $883,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter worth approximately $430,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.85, for a total transaction of $2,358,412.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 303,331 shares in the company, valued at $55,160,742.35. The trade was a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.84% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Avery Dennison Stock Up 1.6 %

AVY opened at $172.35 on Tuesday. Avery Dennison Co. has a 12 month low of $157.00 and a 12 month high of $233.48. The company has a market cap of $13.61 billion, a PE ratio of 19.76, a price-to-earnings-growth 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. The company has a 50 day moving average of $178.39 and a 200 day moving average of $192.27.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 EPS 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 40.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on AVY shares. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 price target (down from $245.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets set a $226.00 target price on Avery Dennison in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 price target (down from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 target price on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avery Dennison currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $220.87.

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.