Phocas Financial Corp. Lowers Stake in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT)

Phocas Financial Corp. trimmed its position in Avient Co. (NYSE:AVNT) by 5.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 174,852 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,687 shares during the quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. owned 0.19% of Avient worth $8,799,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AVNT. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its position in Avient by 2.9% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 46,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,350,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Prudent Man Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avient in the 3rd quarter valued at $200,000. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL lifted its holdings in shares of Avient by 27.9% during the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL now owns 9,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $474,000 after acquiring an additional 2,053 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in Avient by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 53,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,698,000 after purchasing an additional 2,581 shares during the period. Finally, Cable Hill Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Avient in the 3rd quarter valued at $220,000. 95.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avient Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AVNT opened at $50.75 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.64 billion, a PE ratio of 31.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Avient Co. has a 12-month low of $33.84 and a 12-month high of $54.68.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.02. Avient had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The company had revenue of $815.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $797.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.57 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Avient Co. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avient Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is an increase from Avient’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Avient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.58%.

Insider Transactions at Avient

In other news, SVP Joel R. Rathbun sold 5,762 shares of Avient stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.45, for a total value of $296,454.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVNT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Avient from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $49.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Avient from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Avient from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Avient from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.50.

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.