Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 686 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 296,047 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 686 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $55,399,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Regents Gate Capital LLP bought a new stake in Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 76.0% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 301 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Avery Dennison in the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its holdings in Avery Dennison by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Avery Dennison by 22.5% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 397 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on AVY shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on Avery Dennison from $235.00 to $207.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 price objective (down from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $215.00 price target (down from $245.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $222.51.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,068 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVY opened at $170.30 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. Avery Dennison Co. has a 12-month low of $168.77 and a 12-month high of $233.48. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $181.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $195.27. The firm has a market cap of $13.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.53, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by ($0.01). Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 33.06% and a net margin of 8.05%. Equities research analysts predict that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Avery Dennison Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio is 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.