Verition Fund Management LLC Lowers Stake in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Verition Fund Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) by 73.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 4,277 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,764 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Avient were worth $215,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Avient by 81.6% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 663 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Avient by 58.7% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 865 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Avient by 35.4% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new stake in shares of Avient during the second quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position in Avient by 185.5% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 948 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.48% of the company’s stock.

Avient Stock Performance

NYSE:AVNT opened at $47.52 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $4.34 billion, a PE ratio of 29.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.50. Avient Co. has a fifty-two week low of $35.50 and a fifty-two week high of $54.68.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.02. Avient had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The company had revenue of $815.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $797.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Avient Co. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avient Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Avient’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Avient’s payout ratio is currently 66.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on AVNT shares. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Avient from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Avient from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Avient from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avient presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Joel R. Rathbun sold 5,762 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.45, for a total value of $296,454.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.