Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 277,554 Shares of Avery Dennison Corporation (NYSE:AVY)

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Avery Dennison Corporation by 2.9% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 12.74% of the company's shares, valued at about $1.77 billion.
• Avery Dennison reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.42, beating estimates, although its revenue of $2.22 billion declined by 0.7% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.94 per share, representing a 2.2% yield with a payout ratio of 42.20%.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Avery Dennison Corporation (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,959,263 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 277,554 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 12.74% of Avery Dennison worth $1,772,450,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its stake in Avery Dennison by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 1,100 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in Avery Dennison by 17.7% during the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 393 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP increased its stake in Avery Dennison by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,384 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,169 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC now owns 7,889 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,404,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on AVY. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $177.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating and a $175.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $195.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $194.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $197.60.

Avery Dennison Trading Up 1.7%

Avery Dennison stock traded up $2.90 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $174.72. The stock had a trading volume of 906,031 shares, compared to its average volume of 653,399. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $176.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $177.61. Avery Dennison Corporation has a twelve month low of $157.00 and a twelve month high of $224.38. The firm has a market cap of $13.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.61, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. Avery Dennison had a net margin of 8.14% and a return on equity of 33.14%. The firm's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.42 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Avery Dennison Corporation will post 9.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 3rd. Avery Dennison's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.20%.

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.