Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Lowers Position in Avient Corporation $AVNT

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of Avient Corporation (NYSE:AVNT) by 42.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,315 shares of the company’s stock after selling 25,259 shares during the period. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Avient were worth $1,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AVNT. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avient by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,252,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,797,000 after purchasing an additional 19,813 shares during the period. Channing Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Avient by 19.1% in the third quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 2,095,821 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,057,000 after purchasing an additional 335,670 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Avient by 27.8% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,729,925 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,001,000 after purchasing an additional 376,667 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its stake in Avient by 5.7% in the second quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 1,560,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,407,000 after purchasing an additional 84,784 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Avient by 21.9% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,288,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,634,000 after purchasing an additional 231,102 shares in the last quarter. 95.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Avient from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $45.00 target price on Avient in a research note on Friday, February 13th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Avient from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Avient from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Avient in a report on Monday, December 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.00.

Avient Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE AVNT opened at $41.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.44. Avient Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $27.48 and a fifty-two week high of $44.85. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $760.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $750.19 million. Avient had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 10.95%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. Avient has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.810-0.810 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.930-3.170 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Avient Corporation will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Avient Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Avient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 123.60%.

About Avient

Avient Corporation (NYSE: AVNT) is a global provider of specialized and sustainable polymer materials, delivering color, additive and engineered solutions to a wide range of industries. The company’s core offerings include masterbatches, colorant systems, compounds and resins designed to enhance performance, aesthetics and environmental sustainability. Avient serves markets such as packaging, automotive, consumer goods, healthcare, electronics, and agriculture, tailoring products to meet stringent regulatory and end-use requirements.

Formed through a corporate rebranding in 2020 following the divestiture of PolyOne’s specialty businesses, Avient traces its heritage to a legacy of polymer innovation spanning decades.