Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,300,000 shares, a growth of 10.2% from the April 30th total of 1,180,000 shares. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 420,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Avery Dennison Stock Down 0.2 %

Avery Dennison stock traded down $0.40 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $227.19. 531,121 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 444,818. The business has a fifty day moving average of $220.42 and a 200 day moving average of $208.78. 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 has a market cap of $18.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.22, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.91. Avery Dennison has a 12-month low of $162.32 and a 12-month high of $229.98.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15 billion. Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 32.59% and a net margin of 6.56%. Research analysts anticipate that Avery Dennison will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Increases Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 5th. This is an increase 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 1.55%. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Avery Dennison from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 price target (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Avery Dennison from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Citigroup boosted their price target on Avery Dennison from $223.00 to $234.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Avery Dennison from $218.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $228.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avery Dennison

In other Avery Dennison news, insider Ryan D. Yost sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $606,383.47. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Avery Dennison news, SVP Deena Baker-Nel sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.17, for a total transaction of $684,510.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,577 shares in the company, valued at $359,824.09. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ryan D. Yost sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.29, for a total value of $298,606.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $606,383.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,628 shares of company stock worth $2,621,128 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avery Dennison

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 22.7% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,670,469 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $487,857,000 after purchasing an additional 493,857 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 55.7% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,788,321 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $326,673,000 after purchasing an additional 639,521 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 4,159.9% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,163,264 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 1,096,524 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $200,302,000 after acquiring an additional 57,106 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,019,802 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $227,660,000 after acquiring an additional 35,538 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.