Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Monday morning.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Avery Dennison from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Avery Dennison from $223.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Bank of America cut Avery Dennison from a buy rating to an underperform rating and set a $208.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Raymond James lifted their price target on Avery Dennison from $199.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Avery Dennison from $185.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Avery Dennison currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $221.00.

Avery Dennison Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE AVY opened at $212.42 on Monday. Avery Dennison has a twelve month low of $158.93 and a twelve month high of $225.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $215.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $200.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.10 billion, a PE ratio of 34.21, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.90.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.16. Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 30.97% and a net margin of 6.01%. The firm had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.65 EPS. Avery Dennison’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Avery Dennison will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 6th were issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 5th. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is currently 52.17%.

Insider Activity

In other 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 2,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $606,383.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related 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 transaction, the insider now owns 2,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $606,383.47. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Ignacio J. Walker sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,305,217.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 19,879 shares of company stock valued at $4,217,705. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avery Dennison

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,715,000. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 133.4% in the 4th quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 26,318 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,320,000 after acquiring an additional 15,040 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 4,159.9% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 1,191,228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $240,819,000 after acquiring an additional 1,163,264 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 192.2% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 10,713 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,166,000 after acquiring an additional 7,047 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 736.1% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 142,766 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,080,000 after acquiring an additional 125,691 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

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.