Biechele Royce Advisors Cuts Holdings in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Biechele Royce Advisors lessened its position in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 4.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 8,614 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 417 shares during the quarter. Avery Dennison comprises approximately 0.6% of Biechele Royce Advisors’ holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. Biechele Royce Advisors’ holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $1,902,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVY. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Avery Dennison by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 191,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,826,000 after purchasing an additional 1,011 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its holdings in Avery Dennison by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 1,344 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $300,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC grew its position in Avery Dennison by 19.3% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 4,805 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,073,000 after acquiring an additional 779 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 1.0% during the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 11,940 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,666,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avery Dennison in the first quarter valued at $388,000. 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 7,108 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.12, for a total value of $1,550,396.96. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 304,114 shares in the company, valued at $66,333,345.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.95, for a total value of $608,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 304,114 shares in the company, valued at $61,719,936.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 7,108 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.12, for a total value of $1,550,396.96. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 304,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $66,333,345.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 49,108 shares of company stock worth $10,407,587. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

NYSE AVY traded down $0.92 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $206.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 389,108 shares, compared to its average volume of 466,778. The stock has a market cap of $16.56 billion, a PE ratio of 24.75, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $215.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $218.19. Avery Dennison Co. has a 52 week low of $175.10 and a 52 week high of $233.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 33.01% and a net margin of 7.76%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 42.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on AVY shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of Avery Dennison from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $207.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group downgraded Avery Dennison from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $262.00 to $235.00 in a report on Thursday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Avery Dennison from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $230.00 to $210.00 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $252.00 to $247.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $274.60 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Avery Dennison presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $244.96.

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.