Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes Position in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 204,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,344,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.22% of Avient as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Avient by 56.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 695 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Avient during the fourth quarter worth about $90,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Avient in the fourth quarter worth about $96,000. KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of Avient by 47.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,090 shares of the company's stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 1,312 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Point Inc. increased its stake in shares of Avient by 23.6% during the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 5,164 shares of the company's stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.48% of the company's stock.

Avient Trading Up 4.3 %

Avient stock opened at $32.11 on Wednesday. Avient Co. has a one year low of $27.86 and a one year high of $54.68. The business's fifty day moving average is $37.75 and its 200 day moving average is $43.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of 17.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.42.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 EPS 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, sell-side analysts predict that Avient Co. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Avient Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. Avient's payout ratio is 59.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Avient Company 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.

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