Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Has $934,000 Stock Position in Avient Corporation $AVNT

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Avient Corporation (NYSE:AVNT) by 73.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 28,343 shares of the company’s stock after selling 79,053 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Avient were worth $934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in Avient by 61.0% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 328,706 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,215,000 after purchasing an additional 124,510 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Avient by 75.9% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Avient by 45.1% in the first quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 18,868 shares of the company’s stock valued at $701,000 after buying an additional 5,868 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP raised its position in shares of Avient by 543.0% during the first quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 128,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,791,000 after acquiring an additional 108,874 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Avient by 12.5% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,057,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,296,000 after acquiring an additional 117,878 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.48% of the company’s stock.

Avient Price Performance

Avient stock opened at $31.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.83, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.46. Avient Corporation has a 52-week low of $27.48 and a 52-week high of $44.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 2.03. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $30.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $33.01.

Avient (NYSE:AVNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.01. Avient had a net margin of 3.49% and a return on equity of 10.75%. The company had revenue of $806.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $823.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. Avient’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Avient has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.770-2.870 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Avient Corporation will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Avient Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. This is an increase from Avient’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Avient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on AVNT shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Avient in a report on Monday, December 22nd. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Avient in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Avient from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $37.00 target price on shares of Avient in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.50.

Avient Profile

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.