Voloridge Investment Management LLC Acquires Shares of 68,242 Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 68,242 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $12,770,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Avery Dennison as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at $496,000. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter valued at $203,000. Running Oak Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC now owns 63,830 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $11,945,000 after acquiring an additional 7,572 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter valued at $11,396,000. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 1,434 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Argus lowered Avery Dennison from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Avery Dennison from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Barclays decreased their price objective on Avery Dennison from $225.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Avery Dennison in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "hold" rating and a $175.00 price objective 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $206.60.

Avery Dennison Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE AVY traded up $0.65 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $178.41. The stock had a trading volume of 84,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 611,213. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.73. Avery Dennison Co. has a 1 year low of $157.00 and a 1 year high of $233.48. The stock has a market cap of $13.95 billion, a PE ratio of 20.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $174.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $184.40.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). Avery Dennison had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 33.06%. The business had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The company's revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This is a boost from Avery Dennison's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. Avery Dennison's payout ratio is presently 43.32%.

Insider Activity

In other Avery Dennison news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,068 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.19, for a total transaction of $1,502,180.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 316,300 shares in the company, valued at $58,891,897. This represents a 2.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

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.