Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) Holdings Lowered by ARK Investment Management LLC

ARK Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,758 shares of the company’s stock after selling 413 shares during the period. ARK Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Avient were worth $72,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AVNT. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Avient by 58.7% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 865 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Avient by 44.9% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Avient in the third quarter valued at $60,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Avient by 185.5% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 948 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Avient during the fourth quarter worth about $96,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.48% of the company’s stock.

Avient Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE AVNT opened at $42.78 on Thursday. 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 12 month low of $37.63 and a 12 month high of $54.68. The company has a market cap of $3.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.51. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.31.

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

Avient Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Avient’s dividend payout ratio is 59.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVNT has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Avient from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Avient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

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.