Homestead Advisers Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Homestead Advisers Corp decreased its position in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 424,658 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 14,600 shares during the period. Avery Dennison makes up about 1.9% of Homestead Advisers Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Homestead Advisers Corp’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $79,466,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Avery Dennison by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 142 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Regents Gate Capital LLP purchased a new position in Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Avery Dennison in the third quarter worth about $66,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 76.0% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 301 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its stake in Avery Dennison by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 target price (down previously from $245.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Avery Dennison from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $210.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.51.

Avery Dennison Price Performance

AVY stock opened at $178.04 on Thursday. Avery Dennison Co. has a 1 year low of $173.02 and a 1 year high of $233.48. The business’s 50-day moving average is $183.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $197.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.39 by ($0.01). Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 33.06% and a net margin of 8.05%. Analysts anticipate that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.37%.

Insider Activity

In other Avery Dennison news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.85, for a total transaction of $2,358,412.65. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 303,331 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,160,742.35. The trade was a 4.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison 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.