Comparing Avient (NYSE:AVNT) and LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) and Avient (NYSE:AVNT) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, risk, earnings and valuation.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

71.2% of LyondellBasell Industries shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 95.5% of Avient shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of LyondellBasell Industries shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Avient shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

LyondellBasell Industries pays an annual dividend of $5.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 10.9%. Avient pays an annual dividend of $1.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. LyondellBasell Industries pays out -146.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Avient pays out 89.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. LyondellBasell Industries has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years and Avient has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. LyondellBasell Industries is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Risk and Volatility

LyondellBasell Industries has a beta of 0.7, meaning that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Avient has a beta of 1.44, meaning that its stock price is 44% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for LyondellBasell Industries and Avient, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
LyondellBasell Industries	5	16	2	0	1.87
Avient	0	4	4	0	2.50

LyondellBasell Industries currently has a consensus target price of $52.42, indicating a potential upside of 4.08%. Avient has a consensus target price of $43.50, indicating a potential upside of 18.46%. Given Avient’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Avient is more favorable than LyondellBasell Industries.

Profitability

This table compares LyondellBasell Industries and Avient’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
LyondellBasell Industries	-3.70%	7.50%	2.53%
Avient	3.49%	10.75%	4.25%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares LyondellBasell Industries and Avient”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
LyondellBasell Industries	$37.78 billion	0.43	$1.37 billion	($3.75)	-13.43
Avient	$3.25 billion	1.04	$169.50 million	$1.23	29.85

LyondellBasell Industries has higher revenue and earnings than Avient. LyondellBasell Industries is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Avient, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Avient beats LyondellBasell Industries on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About LyondellBasell Industries

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. operates as a chemical company in the United States, Germany, Mexico, Italy, Poland, France, Japan, China, the Netherlands, and internationally. The company operates in six segments: Olefins and PolyolefinsAmericas; Olefins and PolyolefinsEurope, Asia, International; Intermediates and Derivatives; Advanced Polymer Solutions; Refining; and Technology. It produces and markets olefins and co-products, polyethylene, and polypropylene; and propylene oxide and derivatives; oxyfuels and related products; and intermediate chemicals, such as styrene monomer, acetyls, ethylene oxide, and ethylene glycol. In addition, the company produce and markets compounding and solutions including polypropylene compounds, engineered plastics, masterbatches, engineered composites, colors and powders, and advanced polymers including catalloy and polybutene-1; and refines heavy, high-sulfur crude oil and other crude oils, as well as refined products, including gasoline and distillates. Further, it develops and licenses chemical and polyolefin process technologies; manufactures and sells polyolefin catalysts; and serves food packaging, home furnishings, automotive components, and paints and coatings applications. LyondellBasell Industries N.V. was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

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 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. Its products are used in medical and pharmaceutical devices, food packaging, personal care and cosmetics, transportation, building products, wire and cable, recreational and athletic apparel, construction and filtration, outdoor furniture, healthcare, textiles and appliances, and industrial markets. The Specialty Engineered Materials segment provides specialty polymer formulations, services, and solutions for designers, assemblers, and processors of thermoplastic materials. It sells its products through direct sales personnel, distributors, and commissioned sales agents. The company was formerly known as PolyOne Corporation and changed its name to Avient Corporation in June 2020. Avient Corporation was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in Avon Lake, Ohio.