Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Takes $2.87 Million Position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new position in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 15,352 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,873,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 8.2% during 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 during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Avery Dennison by 21.4% in 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 acquiring an additional 134,560 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Avery Dennison by 0.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 699,541 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $154,431,000 after acquiring an additional 3,118 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 699,091 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,821,000 after purchasing an additional 10,674 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 0.8% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 617,611 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $136,338,000 after purchasing an additional 4,670 shares in the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AVY. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 target price (down from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lowered their target price 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. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Avery Dennison from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $210.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.51.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chairman now directly 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

Shares of AVY opened at $179.05 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $185.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $198.67. 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 company has a market capitalization of $14.14 billion, a PE ratio of 20.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85. Avery Dennison Co. has a 52-week low of $174.91 and a 52-week high of $233.48.

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

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.37%.

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.