Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $1.67 Million Stock Position in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) by 53.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,824 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 14,172 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Avient were worth $1,667,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Avient by 56.2% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 695 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Avient in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $90,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Avient in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $96,000. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Avient by 47.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,090 shares of the company's stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 1,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trust Point Inc. lifted its stake in Avient by 23.6% during the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 5,164 shares of the company's stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the last quarter. 95.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Avient Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:AVNT traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $35.94. The stock had a trading volume of 408,238 shares, compared to its average volume of 552,587. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.88. The company has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 19.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.38. Avient Co. has a 12-month low of $27.86 and a 12-month high of $54.68. The company's 50 day moving average is $34.86 and its 200-day moving average is $41.08.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $826.60 million during 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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.76 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Avient Co. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Avient Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 20th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.01%. Avient's payout ratio is 100.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on AVNT shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Avient from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Baird R W raised shares of Avient to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Avient from $51.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird started coverage on shares of Avient in a research note on Friday, March 14th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $43.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avient has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.80.

Avient Company 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.