Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) Shares Sold by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. lowered its stake in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,804 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 443 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $1,086,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in 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. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 6.8% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,416,798 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $312,772,000 after acquiring an additional 90,250 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Avery Dennison by 2,629.0% in the 3rd 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. grew its position in Avery Dennison by 135.6% during the 4th quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 146,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,476,000 after purchasing an additional 84,501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Avery Dennison by 12.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 420,232 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $92,771,000 after purchasing an additional 46,390 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AVY shares. BMO Capital Markets set a $226.00 price target on Avery Dennison in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group decreased their price target on Avery Dennison from $235.00 to $207.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Avery Dennison from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $210.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 price target (down from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.51.

Avery Dennison Price Performance

Avery Dennison stock opened at $184.34 on Monday. 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 firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $187.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $202.56. Avery Dennison Co. has a 52 week low of $178.72 and a 52 week high of $233.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.89.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio 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.