Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Takes $279,000 Position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,493 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $279,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVY. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 26,869 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,028,000 after purchasing an additional 1,968 shares during the last quarter. Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super acquired a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,307,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in shares of Avery Dennison in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,918,000. XTX Topco Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 64.2% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 5,557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,040,000 after acquiring an additional 2,172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC increased its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 13,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,516,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 price objective (down previously from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Avery Dennison in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Avery Dennison from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $210.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $215.00 price target (down from $245.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Avery Dennison currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $220.87.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 8,068 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.19, for a total transaction of $1,502,180.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 316,300 shares in the company, valued at $58,891,897. This trade represents a 2.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Price Performance

NYSE:AVY opened at $170.98 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85. 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 52 week low of $157.00 and a 52 week high of $233.48. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $177.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $191.61.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 33.06%. Equities analysts expect that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current year.

Avery Dennison Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.37%.

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.