Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Acquires 1,707 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 106,805 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,707 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned 0.13% of Avery Dennison worth $21,592,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bailard Inc. increased its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 12,196 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,466,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Avery Dennison by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,714 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $347,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at about $217,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in Avery Dennison by 250.4% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 403 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avery Dennison Price Performance

Shares of Avery Dennison stock traded up $1.86 on Friday, reaching $219.02. 556,567 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 444,945. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $215.71 and its 200-day moving average is $200.36. Avery Dennison Co. has a one year low of $158.93 and a one year high of $225.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $17.64 billion, a PE ratio of 31.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.90.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be paid a $0.88 dividend. This is an increase from Avery Dennison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 5th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.30%.

Insider Activity at Avery Dennison

In related news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,168 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.36, for a total value of $1,775,396.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 321,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,878,414.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Avery Dennison news, Director Julia A. Stewart sold 5,311 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.26, for a total value of $1,074,202.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,014,940.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.36, for a total transaction of $1,775,396.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 321,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,878,414.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,879 shares of company stock valued at $4,217,705 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on AVY. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 price target (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $223.00 to $234.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $248.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Avery Dennison presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.00.

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.