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

Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) saw a significant growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,980,000 shares, a growth of 7.0% from the December 15th total of 1,850,000 shares. Approximately 2.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 542,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AVY shares. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Avery Dennison from $258.00 to $245.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Avery Dennison from $252.00 to $247.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $228.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Avery Dennison from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $230.00 to $210.00 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Avery Dennison has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.05.

Avery Dennison Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:AVY traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $191.07. 623,810 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 501,975. Avery Dennison has a 12-month low of $181.99 and a 12-month high of $233.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $195.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $207.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.94, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.89.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.01. Avery Dennison had a net margin of 7.76% and a return on equity of 33.01%. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Avery Dennison will post 9.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Avery Dennison Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 4th were paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 42.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Nicholas Colisto sold 3,679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $757,874.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,467,956. This trade represents a 34.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avery Dennison

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 142 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Avery Dennison during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 1,400.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 255 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Avery Dennison in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

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.