Luminus Management LLC Takes $1.89 Million Position in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Luminus Management LLC purchased a new position in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 46,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,892,000. Avient makes up about 2.2% of Luminus Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Luminus Management LLC owned 0.05% of Avient as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its position in Avient by 51.3% in the 4th quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 55,703 shares of the company's stock worth $2,276,000 after purchasing an additional 18,877 shares during the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Avient by 23.9% in the fourth quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 48,687 shares of the company's stock worth $1,989,000 after buying an additional 9,401 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. raised its position in Avient by 177.6% during the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 26,503 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,083,000 after acquiring an additional 16,956 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. bought a new position in Avient during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,421,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Avient by 43.6% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 85,836 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,507,000 after acquiring an additional 26,055 shares during the last quarter. 95.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on AVNT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Avient from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Avient from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on Avient in a research report on Friday, March 14th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Avient from $51.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Three research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avient presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $46.80.

Avient Stock Performance

AVNT traded down $0.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $37.79. The stock had a trading volume of 263,022 shares, compared to its average volume of 666,370. The firm has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a PE ratio of 20.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. Avient Co. has a 12 month low of $27.86 and a 12 month high of $54.68. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.60.

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

Avient Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. Avient's dividend payout ratio is currently 100.93%.

Avient 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.