Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Buys Shares of 15,352 Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 15,352 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,873,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Avery Dennison in the fourth quarter worth $51,521,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Avery Dennison by 8.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,088,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $459,621,000 after purchasing an additional 157,754 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 21.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 764,591 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $143,078,000 after purchasing an additional 134,560 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 411.3% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 123,360 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $23,084,000 after purchasing an additional 99,232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 2,629.0% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 91,857 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $20,278,000 after buying an additional 88,491 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on AVY. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $215.00 target price (down previously from $245.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays cut 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 note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America reduced their price target on Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $208.00 target price (down from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price target on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $222.51.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 303,331 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,160,742.35. This represents a 4.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Up 1.4 %

Avery Dennison stock traded up $2.47 on Monday, hitting $177.05. 575,846 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 513,326. Avery Dennison Co. has a 1 year low of $173.02 and a 1 year high of $233.48. The firm has a market cap of $13.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $184.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.90.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 33.06%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. Avery Dennison's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.37%.

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.