Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. Reduces Holdings in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its stake in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report) by 10.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,944 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,708 shares during the quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $2,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AVY. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,225,309 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $790,683,000 after buying an additional 150,572 shares during the last quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. raised its stake in Avery Dennison by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 63,293 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $11,844,000 after acquiring an additional 7,171 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its position in Avery Dennison by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 174,913 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,751,000 after acquiring an additional 16,699 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in Avery Dennison by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 39,169 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,337,000 after purchasing an additional 1,731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 45.9% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,572 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,043,000 after purchasing an additional 1,753 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,068 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.19, for a total transaction of $1,502,180.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 316,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,891,897. This represents a 2.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on AVY shares. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 target price on Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $208.00 to $194.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $215.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Avery Dennison from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $210.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.47.

Avery Dennison Stock Up 3.7 %

Avery Dennison stock opened at $175.21 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $190.52. Avery Dennison Co. has a 12 month low of $157.00 and a 12 month high of $233.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

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

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. Avery Dennison's payout ratio is currently 40.37%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AVY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.