Focus Partners Wealth Purchases 2,089 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) by 134.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,640 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,089 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth's holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $708,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in Avery Dennison by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,352 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Avery Dennison by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 367 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Avery Dennison by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 11,862 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,220,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in Avery Dennison by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 1,100 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Avery Dennison by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 10,981 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,055,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Avery Dennison

In other news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chairman now owns 303,331 shares in the company, valued at $55,160,742.35. This represents a 4.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AVY traded down $2.66 during trading on Friday, reaching $177.64. 586,550 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 612,831. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $184.80. 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 PE ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.88. Avery Dennison Co. has a 52-week low of $157.00 and a 52-week high of $233.48.

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

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AVY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Avery Dennison from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $205.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $226.00 to $216.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Raymond James dropped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $208.00 to $194.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed 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 on the stock. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $207.00 to $189.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note 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 data from MarketBeat, Avery Dennison presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $206.60.

Avery Dennison 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.