Avient (NYSE:AVNT) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Avient from “buy” to “strong-buy.” Analyst views remain mixed overall, with MarketBeat reporting a consensus “hold” rating and an average price target of $47.88.
• Avient beat quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $0.86 versus $0.80 forecast and revenue of $891.2 million versus $857.5 million expected. Revenue rose 10.5% year over year.
• Several analysts raised their price targets, including Truist to $56, Barclays to $50, and Wells Fargo to $48.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on AVNT. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Avient from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on Avient from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Truist Financial raised their price target on Avient from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings raised Avient from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Avient from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $47.88.

Avient Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of AVNT stock opened at $45.54 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Avient has a 12-month low of $27.48 and a 12-month high of $49.08. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $41.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.73. The firm has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.23.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $891.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $857.49 million. Avient had a net margin of 5.10% and a return on equity of 11.64%. The firm's revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Avient will post 3.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avient

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVNT. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Avient in the second quarter worth $4,612,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in shares of Avient in the second quarter worth $905,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in shares of Avient by 214.8% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 42,198 shares of the company's stock worth $1,697,000 after buying an additional 28,792 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG bought a new position in Avient during the second quarter worth about $2,597,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avient during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,803,000. 95.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Avient

Avient Corporation NYSE: AVNT is a global provider of specialized and sustainable polymer materials. The company develops, formulates and manufactures engineered materials, colorants, additives and performance-enhancing solutions used to improve the appearance, durability, processing and functionality of plastic products.

Its offerings include specialty polymer formulations, thermoplastic compounds, color and additive concentrates, advanced composites, barrier technologies and recycled or bio-based material solutions.

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