Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) Short Interest Update

Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,020,000 shares, a decline of 9.7% from the May 31st total of 1,130,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 440,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Avient Stock Up 0.7 %

Avient stock traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $42.59. 223,418 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 454,008. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $44.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Avient has a 1-year low of $27.73 and a 1-year high of $47.87. The stock has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.47.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.07. Avient had a return on equity of 9.79% and a net margin of 3.37%. The business had revenue of $829.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $818.45 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Avient will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avient Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 21st will be given a dividend of $0.257 per share. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 21st. Avient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AVNT shares. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Avient from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Avient from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Avient from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Avient currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.20.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Avient in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Avient by 88.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 811 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Avient by 42.8% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Avient in the 1st quarter valued at $133,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. grew its position in Avient by 11.2% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 4,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.48% of the company’s stock.

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.