Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) Shares Bought by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,069,093 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 90,535 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 4.45% of Avient worth $166,259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AVNT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Avient by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,313,859 shares of the company's stock worth $421,424,000 after purchasing an additional 79,661 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Avient by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,185,999 shares of the company's stock valued at $130,180,000 after purchasing an additional 276,357 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Avient by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,825,283 shares of the company's stock worth $74,581,000 after buying an additional 128,718 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in Avient by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,515,362 shares of the company's stock worth $76,253,000 after buying an additional 17,765 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Avient by 120.2% during 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AVNT shares. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Avient in a research report on Friday, March 14th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. 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 cut their target price on shares of Avient from $55.00 to $39.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of Avient to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $48.60.

Avient Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of AVNT traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $33.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 66,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 537,962. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $27.86 and a 12-month high of $54.68. The stock has a market cap of $3.07 billion, a PE ratio of 18.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.41. The company's 50 day moving average is $36.92 and its 200 day moving average is $42.70.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.49. Avient had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 10.44%. Equities analysts anticipate that Avient Co. will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avient Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. Avient's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.02%.

Avient 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.