Head to Head Survey: Mitsubishi Chemical (OTCMKTS:MTLHY) and Avient (NYSE:AVNT)

Mitsubishi Chemical (OTCMKTS:MTLHY) and Avient (NYSE:AVNT) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, earnings, valuation and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Mitsubishi Chemical and Avient’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mitsubishi Chemical	N/A	N/A	N/A
Avient	4.81%	11.11%	4.40%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Mitsubishi Chemical and Avient”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mitsubishi Chemical	$24.61 billion	0.41	$78.58 million	$0.61	56.89
Avient	$3.26 billion	1.06	$81.90 million	$1.72	21.97

Avient has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Mitsubishi Chemical. Avient is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Mitsubishi Chemical, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Mitsubishi Chemical has a beta of 0.66, meaning that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Avient has a beta of 1.28, meaning that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Mitsubishi Chemical and Avient, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mitsubishi Chemical	0	0	0	0	0.00
Avient	0	4	3	0	2.43

Avient has a consensus price target of $45.71, suggesting a potential upside of 20.97%. Given Avient’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Avient is more favorable than Mitsubishi Chemical.

Dividends

Mitsubishi Chemical pays an annual dividend of $0.66 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. Avient pays an annual dividend of $1.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Mitsubishi Chemical pays out 108.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Avient pays out 64.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Avient has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Avient is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

95.5% of Avient shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.9% of Avient shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Avient beats Mitsubishi Chemical on 15 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mitsubishi Chemical

Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation provides performance products, chemicals, industrial gases, health care products, and other products in Japan and internationally. It operates in five segments: Specialty Materials, Industrial Gases, Health Care, MMA, and Basic Materials. The Specialty Materials segment offers performance polymers, soarnol, gohsenol, sustainable polymers, and engineering plastics; coating materials, additives, and fines; packaging, industrial and medical, acetyl, and polyester films; engineering shapes and solutions, carbon fiber and composite materials, and fibers; aqua, life, and infrastructure solutions; and semiconductor, electronics, and battery materials. The Industrial Gases segment provides industrial gases. The Health Care segment offers ethical pharmaceuticals. The MMA segment provides methyl methacrylate (MMA) and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). The Basic Materials segment offers basic petrochemicals, polyolefins, and basic chemical derivatives, as well as carbon products. The company provides engineering, transportation, and warehousing services. Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

About Avient

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. Its products are used in medical and pharmaceutical devices, food packaging, personal care and cosmetics, transportation, building products, wire and cable, recreational and athletic apparel, construction and filtration, outdoor furniture, healthcare, textiles and appliances, and industrial markets. The Specialty Engineered Materials segment provides specialty polymer formulations, services, and solutions for designers, assemblers, and processors of thermoplastic materials. It sells its products through direct sales personnel, distributors, and commissioned sales agents. The company was formerly known as PolyOne Corporation and changed its name to Avient Corporation in June 2020. Avient Corporation was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in Avon Lake, Ohio.