Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) CEO Robert M. Patterson Buys 24,304 Shares of Stock

Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) CEO Robert M. Patterson bought 24,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $34.55 per share, with a total value of $839,703.20. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 610,897 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,106,491.35. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Avient Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of Avient stock opened at $35.19 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $33.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.40. The company has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.41, a P/E/G ratio of 6.60 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Avient Co. has a 1 year low of $27.73 and a 1 year high of $44.74.

Avient Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 15th will be paid a $0.257 dividend. This is an increase from Avient’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 14th. Avient’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Avient from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $46.00 to $37.00 in a report on Monday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Avient in a report on Tuesday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Avient currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.17.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avient

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ibex Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Avient during the 1st quarter worth about $431,000. King Luther Capital Management Corp raised its stake in shares of Avient by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 48,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,008,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio raised its stake in shares of Avient by 17.8% during the 2nd quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 179,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,345,000 after purchasing an additional 27,100 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Avient by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,111,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,752,000 after purchasing an additional 38,507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its stake in shares of Avient by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 15,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $638,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. 94.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Avient

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 specialized color and additive concentrates in solid and liquid form for thermoplastics; dispersions for thermosets; and specialty inks.