Gotham Asset Management LLC Boosts Stake in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) by 51.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,703 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,877 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Avient were worth $2,276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Avient in the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,344,000. Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Avient by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 12,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $529,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its holdings in shares of Avient by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 42,076 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,719,000 after purchasing an additional 1,295 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in shares of Avient by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 276,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,310,000 after purchasing an additional 6,609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Avient by 120.2% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,460,481 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,675,000 after buying an additional 797,112 shares during the period. 95.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Avient Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVNT opened at $37.93 on Friday. Avient Co. has a 12 month low of $27.86 and a 12 month high of $54.68. The stock has a market cap of $3.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.73, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $35.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.42.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $826.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $834.90 million. Avient had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 5.23%. The firm’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.76 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Avient Co. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avient Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 20th. Avient’s payout ratio is 100.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AVNT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Avient from $51.00 to $41.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Avient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Avient from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Avient to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.80.

Avient Company Profile

Avient Corporation operates as a formulator of material solutions in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, South America, and Asia. It operates in two segments, Color, Additives and Inks; and Specialty Engineered Materials. The Color, Additives and Inks segment offers custom color and additive concentrates in solid and liquid form for thermoplastics, dispersions for thermosets, and specialty inks; custom-formulated liquid system, such as polyester, vinyl, natural rubber and latex, polyurethane, and silicone; and proprietary inks.