Securian Asset Management Inc. Has $787,000 Position in Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY)

Securian Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Avery Dennison Co. (NYSE:AVY) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,205 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Avery Dennison were worth $787,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Avery Dennison by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,088,516 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $459,621,000 after buying an additional 157,754 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Avery Dennison by 21.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 764,591 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $143,078,000 after buying an additional 134,560 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Avery Dennison by 0.4% during 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 buying an additional 3,118 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Avery Dennison by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 699,091 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,821,000 after buying an additional 10,674 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Avery Dennison by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 617,611 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $136,338,000 after buying an additional 4,670 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avery Dennison Stock Up 1.7 %

Avery Dennison stock opened at $178.91 on Friday. 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 12-month low of $174.91 and a 12-month high of $233.48. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $185.49 and its 200 day moving average is $199.52. The company has a market capitalization of $14.13 billion, a PE ratio of 20.52, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.85.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.39 by ($0.01). Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 33.06% and a net margin of 8.05%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Avery Dennison Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. Avery Dennison’s payout ratio is 40.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Avery Dennison news, Chairman Mitchell R. Butier sold 12,969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.85, for a total transaction of $2,358,412.65. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 303,331 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,160,742.35. This represents a 4.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 target price (down from $218.00) on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup dropped 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. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price target on shares of Avery Dennison in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Avery Dennison from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $222.51.

About Avery Dennison

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.