Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) Shares Acquired by WCM Investment Management LLC

WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 408,544 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 32,394 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.45% of Avient worth $17,285,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AVNT. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Avient by 139.5% during the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,152 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Avient by 42.8% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Avient by 248.2% during the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 1,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 757 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Avient by 123.1% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 655 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming increased its holdings in shares of Avient by 40.1% in the second quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. 95.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avient Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVNT traded down $0.86 during trading on Friday, hitting $41.28. The company had a trading volume of 394,401 shares, compared to its average volume of 391,821. The company has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.73, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.53. Avient Co. has a 52 week low of $27.73 and a 52 week high of $43.97. The business’s 50-day moving average is $40.44 and its 200 day moving average is $37.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.82.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.04. Avient had a net margin of 2.41% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The company had revenue of $719.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $711.87 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.39 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Avient Co. will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avient Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 19th were paid a dividend of $0.257 per share. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 18th. Avient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 124.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday.

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.