Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Purchases 3,371 Shares of Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in shares of Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) by 29.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,655 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,371 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Avient were worth $599,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Avient in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,573,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Avient in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,548,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Avient by 29.8% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 790,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,283,000 after purchasing an additional 181,476 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Avient by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 348,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,257,000 after buying an additional 32,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Walnut Level Capital LLC bought a new position in Avient in the 4th quarter valued at $3,473,000. 95.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVNT has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on Avient in a research note on Friday, March 14th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $43.00 price target on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Avient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Baird R W raised shares of Avient to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Avient from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Avient from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.80.

Avient Stock Down 3.6 %

Shares of NYSE:AVNT opened at $28.79 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $40.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.88. The company has a market capitalization of $2.64 billion, a PE ratio of 15.73, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.41. Avient Co. has a 52 week low of $28.35 and a 52 week high of $54.68.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last released 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%. Analysts forecast that Avient Co. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Avient Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. Avient’s dividend payout ratio is 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.