California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 3,241 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

California Public Employees Retirement System trimmed its position in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 148,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,241 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned about 0.19% of Avery Dennison worth $30,121,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AVY. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 3,298 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $602,000 after buying an additional 914 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the 3rd quarter valued at about $284,000. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the 3rd quarter valued at about $287,000. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 47.4% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 14,084 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,573,000 after buying an additional 4,527 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connecticut Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the 3rd quarter valued at about $247,000. 94.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Avery Dennison

In other Avery Dennison news, insider Ryan D. Yost sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.29, for a total value of $298,606.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 2,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $606,383.47. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Avery Dennison news, SVP Ignacio J. Walker sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.90, for a total value of $1,069,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,305,217.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ryan D. Yost sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.29, for a total value of $298,606.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $606,383.47. 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. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on AVY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Avery Dennison from $218.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Avery Dennison from $248.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 price target (up from $225.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America cut Avery Dennison from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $208.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Avery Dennison from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.00.

Avery Dennison Price Performance

AVY opened at $219.03 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $215.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $200.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $17.64 billion, a PE ratio of 31.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.90. Avery Dennison Co. has a 1 year low of $158.93 and a 1 year high of $225.26.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.16. The firm had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 32.59% and a net margin of 6.56%. Avery Dennison’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

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

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.