Mizuho Securities USA LLC Acquires 2,394 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its position in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) by 45.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,615 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,394 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $1,425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Avery Dennison by 485.2% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 35,630 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $6,715,000 after acquiring an additional 29,541 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. bought a new stake in shares of Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,263,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 420,232 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $92,771,000 after purchasing an additional 46,390 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA acquired a new stake in Avery Dennison in the 3rd quarter valued at about $6,701,000. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter worth about $218,000. 94.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.85, for a total value of $2,358,412.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 303,331 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,160,742.35. This represents a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

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Avery Dennison Trading Down 1.3 %

NYSE AVY traded down $2.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $175.64. 350,687 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 541,528. The firm has a market cap of $13.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $183.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $196.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. Avery Dennison Co. has a 1-year low of $173.02 and a 1-year high of $233.48.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 2.00%. Avery Dennison's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on AVY shares. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $235.00 to $207.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price target on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Avery Dennison from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $210.00 to $205.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Avery Dennison presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $222.51.

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.