Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) Shares Acquired by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,185,999 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 276,357 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 3.49% of Avient worth $130,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Avient by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,313,859 shares of the company's stock worth $421,424,000 after acquiring an additional 79,661 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Avient by 3.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,231,720 shares of the company's stock valued at $213,977,000 after purchasing an additional 121,349 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Avient by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,174,292 shares of the company's stock worth $109,431,000 after buying an additional 43,249 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Avient by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,825,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,581,000 after acquiring an additional 128,718 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in shares of Avient by 1.2% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,515,362 shares of the company's stock worth $76,253,000 after purchasing an additional 17,765 shares in the last quarter. 95.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Seaport Res Ptn raised Avient from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Avient from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Baird R W upgraded Avient to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on Avient in a report on Friday, March 14th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Two research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Avient currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $51.80.

Avient Stock Down 3.0 %

Avient stock traded down $0.91 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $29.52. 442,349 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 527,519. The company has a fifty day moving average of $41.01 and a 200-day moving average of $44.88. The company has a market cap of $2.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.41. 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 twelve month low of $27.26 and a twelve month high of $54.68.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.49. Avient had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 5.23%. Sell-side analysts expect that Avient Co. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Avient Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. Avient's payout ratio is currently 59.02%.

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.