Avient Corporation (NYSE:AVNT) Stock Position Increased by Natixis Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Avient Corporation by 22.8%, owning a total of 68,465 shares worth approximately $2,544,000.
• Analyst ratings for Avient show a mixed outlook, with price targets ranging from $37 to $45.60 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Avient recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, which translates to an annual yield of 3.3%.

Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in Avient Corporation (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) by 22.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,465 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 12,690 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.07% of Avient worth $2,544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AVNT. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Avient by 85.8% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,126 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Avient by 57.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,422 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Avient by 2,450.0% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,479 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,421 shares during the last quarter. Curat Global LLC bought a new stake in shares of Avient in the 1st quarter worth approximately $56,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Avient by 45.2% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,569 shares of the company's stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.48% of the company's stock.

Avient Stock Performance

Avient stock traded up $1.07 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $33.89. 65,158 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 684,202. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $34.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a PE ratio of 26.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.38. Avient Corporation has a one year low of $27.86 and a one year high of $54.68.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $866.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $852.98 million. Avient had a return on equity of 10.57% and a net margin of 3.65%. 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 business earned $0.76 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Avient Corporation will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Avient Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Avient's payout ratio is presently 84.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on AVNT shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Avient from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Avient from $43.00 to $37.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Avient from $51.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $45.60.

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.