Unigestion Holding SA Sells 17,514 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Unigestion Holding SA reduced its stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) by 41.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,746 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 17,514 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA's holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $4,404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at about $188,643,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Avery Dennison by 19,370.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 428,730 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $76,301,000 after acquiring an additional 426,528 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,521,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 12.9% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,185,732 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $409,014,000 after purchasing an additional 250,359 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors bought a new position in shares of Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter worth $40,354,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVY has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Argus lowered shares of Avery Dennison from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Avery Dennison from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $205.00 to $172.00 in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avery Dennison from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Avery Dennison in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "hold" rating and a $175.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Avery Dennison from $207.00 to $189.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.60.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

NYSE AVY traded down $1.09 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $177.64. 658,631 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 618,689. 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 $13.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.88. Avery Dennison Co. has a 1 year low of $157.00 and a 1 year high of $233.48. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $174.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $183.60.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by ($0.02). Avery Dennison had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 33.06%. The firm had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.29 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. This is an increase from Avery Dennison's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Avery Dennison's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.32%.

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.