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Avient (AVNT) is a Top Dividend Stock Right Now: Should You Buy?

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Whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities, all investors love seeing their portfolios score big returns. But for income investors, generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments is your primary focus.

Cash flow can come from bond interest, interest from other types of investments, and of course, dividends. A dividend is that coveted distribution of a company's earnings paid out to shareholders, and investors often view it by its dividend yield, a metric that measures the dividend as a percent of the current stock price. Many academic studies show that dividends account for significant portions of long-term returns, with dividend contributions exceeding one-third of total returns in many cases.

Avient in Focus

Avient (AVNT - Free Report) is headquartered in Avon Lake, and is in the Basic Materials sector. The stock has seen a price change of -15.71% since the start of the year. The maker of resins used in plastic pipe and other products is paying out a dividend of $0.24 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 2.01% compared to the Chemical - Diversified industry's yield of 1.6% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.63%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $0.95 is up 8.6% from last year. Avient has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 9.53%. Any future dividend growth will depend on both earnings growth and the company's payout ratio; a payout ratio is the proportion of a firm's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Avient's current payout ratio is 30%, meaning it paid out 30% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for AVNT for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2022 is $3.51 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 15.08%.

Bottom Line

Investors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide a quarterly payout.

High-growth firms or tech start-ups, for example, rarely provide their shareholders a dividend, while larger, more established companies that have more secure profits are often seen as the best dividend options. Income investors must be conscious of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, AVNT is a compelling investment opportunity. Not only is it a strong dividend play, but the stock currently sits at a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold).


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