Natixis Advisors L.P. Has $43.93 Million Stock Holdings in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 217,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 10,999 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P.’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $43,932,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in Avery Dennison by 4,159.9% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 1,191,228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $240,819,000 after purchasing an additional 1,163,264 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Avery Dennison by 55.7% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,788,321 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $326,673,000 after purchasing an additional 639,521 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Avery Dennison by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,670,469 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $487,857,000 after purchasing an additional 493,857 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Avery Dennison by 43.9% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,007,542 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $184,026,000 after purchasing an additional 307,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in Avery Dennison by 27.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 958,790 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $175,142,000 after purchasing an additional 206,784 shares during the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ryan D. Yost sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.29, for a total transaction of $298,606.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $606,383.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.36, for a total value of $1,775,396.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 321,487 shares in the company, valued at $69,878,414.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ryan D. Yost sold 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 2,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $606,383.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 19,879 shares of company stock worth $4,217,705 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVY has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $223.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $218.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $248.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $224.00.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

Avery Dennison stock traded up $2.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $221.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 319,981 shares, compared to its average volume of 470,654. Avery Dennison Co. has a 12-month low of $158.93 and a 12-month high of $225.26. The company has a market capitalization of $17.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.34, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.87. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $216.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $201.58.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16. Avery Dennison had a net margin of 6.56% and a return on equity of 32.59%. The business had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.65 EPS. Avery Dennison’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. This is a positive change from Avery Dennison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 4th. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 47.30%.

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.