Ethic Inc. Purchases 16,956 Shares of Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Ethic Inc. grew its stake in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) by 177.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,503 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,956 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Avient were worth $1,083,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AVNT. Choreo LLC lifted its stake in Avient by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 5,812 shares of the company's stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Avient by 56.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 695 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in Avient by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 6,599 shares of the company's stock worth $270,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in Avient by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 5,551 shares of the company's stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Avient by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 7,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $311,000 after purchasing an additional 591 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.48% of the company's stock.

Avient Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE AVNT traded down $0.29 on Monday, reaching $37.49. The stock had a trading volume of 35,008 shares, compared to its average volume of 662,391. Avient Co. has a 1 year low of $27.86 and a 1 year high of $54.68. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $35.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Avient Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. Avient's dividend payout ratio is presently 100.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Avient from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Avient from $51.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on shares of Avient in a report on Friday, March 14th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $43.00 target price for the company. Baird R W raised Avient to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.80.

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.