MML Investors Services LLC Acquires 1,837 Shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

MML Investors Services LLC grew its holdings in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,752 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,837 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $2,374,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Avery Dennison by 6.8% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,416,798 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $312,772,000 after purchasing an additional 90,250 shares in the last quarter. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. now owns 794,092 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $175,261,000 after buying an additional 5,756 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Avery Dennison by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 787,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $172,254,000 after acquiring an additional 32,467 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Avery Dennison by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 699,541 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $154,431,000 after acquiring an additional 3,118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Avery Dennison by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 688,417 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $151,975,000 after acquiring an additional 1,782 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Performance

Avery Dennison stock opened at $195.14 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Avery Dennison Co. has a twelve month low of $193.49 and a twelve month high of $233.48. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $206.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $214.30. The company has a market cap of $15.68 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.87.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion for 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 4th. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 42.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AVY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Avery Dennison from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays cut their price target on Avery Dennison from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. StockNews.com cut Avery Dennison from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on 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, Bank of America raised Avery Dennison from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $207.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $244.96.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avery Dennison

In related news, SVP Nicholas Colisto sold 3,679 shares of Avery Dennison stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $757,874.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,467,956. The trade was a 34.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.