Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) Short Interest Up 5.7% in March

Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,300,000 shares, a growth of 5.7% from the March 15th total of 1,230,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 431,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Avery Dennison Stock Down 1.0 %

AVY stock opened at $208.92 on Thursday. Avery Dennison has a twelve month low of $158.93 and a twelve month high of $225.26. The company has a market cap of $16.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $214.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $198.99.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.16. The business had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. Avery Dennison had a net margin of 6.01% and a return on equity of 30.97%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Avery Dennison will post 9.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 6th were issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 52.17%.

Insider Activity at Avery Dennison

In other Avery Dennison news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,168 shares of Avery Dennison stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.36, for a total transaction of $1,775,396.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 321,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,878,414.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Julia A. Stewart sold 5,311 shares of Avery Dennison stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.26, for a total transaction of $1,074,202.86. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,014,940.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.36, for a total transaction of $1,775,396.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 321,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,878,414.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,879 shares of company stock worth $4,217,705 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avery Dennison

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Clear Street Markets LLC lifted its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 92.7% in the first quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Avery Dennison during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Avery Dennison during the third quarter worth $36,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison by 56.3% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Avery Dennison in the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $199.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. UBS Group increased their price target on Avery Dennison from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $249.00 price objective on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 19th. Bank of America cut Avery Dennison from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $208.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Avery Dennison from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $221.00.

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.