Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC Cuts Stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lessened its stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) by 35.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,120 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 4,555 shares during the quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC's holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $1,759,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Avery Dennison during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Avery Dennison in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt increased its position in Avery Dennison by 164.4% in the 4th quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 267 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Adirondack Trust Co. acquired a new position in Avery Dennison in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Julia A. Stewart sold 5,311 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.26, for a total transaction of $1,074,202.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,018 shares in the company, valued at $1,014,940.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Avery Dennison news, SVP Ignacio J. Walker sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.90, for a total transaction of $1,069,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,102 shares in the company, valued at $1,305,217.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Julia A. Stewart sold 5,311 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.26, for a total transaction of $1,074,202.86. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,018 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,014,940.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,879 shares of company stock worth $4,217,705 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AVY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 price target (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $218.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Avery Dennison from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $224.00.

Avery Dennison Trading Down 0.5 %

AVY traded down $1.11 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $217.28. 575,354 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 448,387. Avery Dennison Co. has a one year low of $158.93 and a one year high of $225.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.50 billion, a PE ratio of 31.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $215.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $200.82.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16. Avery Dennison had a net margin of 6.56% and a return on equity of 32.59%. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 4th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. This is an increase from Avery Dennison's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Avery Dennison's dividend payout ratio is currently 47.30%.

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.