Avient Corporation (NYSE:AVNT) Declares $0.27 Quarterly Dividend

Avient Corporation (NYSE:AVNT) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 14th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th will be given a dividend of 0.27 per share on Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th.

Avient has a payout ratio of 34.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Avient to earn $3.28 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.08 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 32.9%.

Avient Stock Down 2.6%

Avient stock opened at $34.03 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Avient has a twelve month low of $27.86 and a twelve month high of $54.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $35.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.29.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $826.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $834.90 million. Avient had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.48%. Avient’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Avient will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avient

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVNT. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of Avient by 3.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 297,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,073,000 after purchasing an additional 10,535 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Avient by 26.7% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 139,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,176,000 after buying an additional 29,327 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Avient by 1.0% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 128,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,782,000 after acquiring an additional 1,321 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Avient by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 53,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,998,000 after acquiring an additional 2,341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Avient by 294.8% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 9,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 6,974 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVNT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Baird R W raised Avient to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Avient from $51.00 to $41.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Avient from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on Avient in a research report on Friday, March 14th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Avient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.