Sapient Capital LLC Takes $209,000 Position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,033 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 25,096 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,584,000 after purchasing an additional 2,976 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Avery Dennison by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 31,336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,724,000 after acquiring an additional 5,400 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 11,785 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,115,000 after acquiring an additional 1,414 shares in the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its stake in Avery Dennison by 4.8% during the third quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 17,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,287,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Partners II LLC increased its holdings in Avery Dennison by 1.9% in the third quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 3,342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $610,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Avery Dennison

In other Avery Dennison news, SVP Ignacio J. Walker sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Ignacio J. Walker sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.90, for a total transaction 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 $1,305,217.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ryan D. Yost sold 1,400 shares of Avery Dennison stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.29, for a total transaction of $298,606.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $606,383.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 14,568 shares of company stock valued at $3,143,502. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on AVY shares. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $240.00 target price (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Avery Dennison from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on Avery Dennison from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Avery Dennison from $248.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Avery Dennison from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avery Dennison presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.00.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

Shares of AVY stock opened at $223.77 on Wednesday. Avery Dennison Co. has a one year low of $158.93 and a one year high of $225.26. The company has a market cap of $18.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $216.74 and a 200-day moving average of $202.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be paid a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 4th. This is an increase from Avery Dennison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is presently 47.30%.

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.