Jennison Associates LLC Decreases Holdings in Avient Corporation $AVNT

Key Points

• Jennison Associates cut its stake in Avient by 46.5% in Q4, selling 625,735 shares and leaving 719,938 shares (about 0.79% of the company) valued at roughly $22.49 million.
• Several analysts have raised targets or ratings recently, but the stock's consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target price of $47.
• Avient shares trade near $36.78 (market cap ~$3.37B) with a PE of ~41.3; it pays a $0.275 quarterly dividend (≈3.0% yield) though the payout ratio is high at 123.6%.

Jennison Associates LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Avient Corporation (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) by 46.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 719,938 shares of the company's stock after selling 625,735 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned 0.79% of Avient worth $22,491,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its holdings in Avient by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 76,187 shares of the company's stock worth $2,380,000 after buying an additional 16,015 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avient in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. M&T Bank Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Avient in the 4th quarter valued at about $268,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its holdings in shares of Avient by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 14,793 shares of the company's stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 1,708 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Avient by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,218,398 shares of the company's stock valued at $319,223,000 after purchasing an additional 77,246 shares during the last quarter. 95.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AVNT shares. Wall Street Zen raised Avient from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Avient from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Avient from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $45.00 target price on Avient in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $46.00 target price on Avient in a report on Friday, February 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $47.00.

Avient Stock Performance

Shares of AVNT stock opened at $36.78 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a PE ratio of 41.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.31. Avient Corporation has a 52-week low of $27.48 and a 52-week high of $44.85. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $37.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $760.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $750.19 million. Avient had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 2.51%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. Avient has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.810-0.810 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.930-3.170 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Avient Corporation will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Avient Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 17th. Avient's payout ratio is 123.60%.

Avient Profile

Avient Corporation NYSE: AVNT is a global provider of specialized and sustainable polymer materials, delivering color, additive and engineered solutions to a wide range of industries. The company's core offerings include masterbatches, colorant systems, compounds and resins designed to enhance performance, aesthetics and environmental sustainability. Avient serves markets such as packaging, automotive, consumer goods, healthcare, electronics, and agriculture, tailoring products to meet stringent regulatory and end-use requirements.

Formed through a corporate rebranding in 2020 following the divestiture of PolyOne's specialty businesses, Avient traces its heritage to a legacy of polymer innovation spanning decades.

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