Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 20,347 Shares of Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Geode Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,153,945 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,347 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.36% of Avient worth $88,031,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Avient by 56.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 695 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Avient by 44.9% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Avient during the 4th quarter valued at about $96,000. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Avient by 47.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,090 shares of the company's stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 1,312 shares during the period. Finally, Trust Point Inc. lifted its stake in Avient by 23.6% in the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 5,164 shares of the company's stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 985 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.48% of the company's stock.

Avient Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of AVNT traded down $0.66 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $30.97. The company had a trading volume of 81,896 shares, compared to its average volume of 544,835. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. Avient Co. has a 52-week low of $27.86 and a 52-week high of $54.68. The firm has a market cap of $2.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.41. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $38.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.79.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49. Avient had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 10.44%. On average, research analysts predict that Avient Co. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Avient Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.49%. Avient's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AVNT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on Avient in a research report on Friday, March 14th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Avient from $55.00 to $39.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Avient from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Baird R W raised Avient to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.60.

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.