Avient's Shares Scale Fresh 52-Week High: What's Driving the Stock?

Avient Corporation's AVNT shares reached a fresh 52-week high of $49.42 on Aug. 26 before closing at $48.64.

In the past year, the stock has appreciated 26% against the industry's 6.8% decline in the same period.

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What's Driving Avient?

Avient is optimistic about sustaining its strong momentum from the second quarter throughout the rest of 2024. The company remains committed to its growth strategy, focusing on delivering innovative materials and processing solutions that align with its sustainability goals while driving continued progress in the second half of the year.

In the second quarter, AVNT posted revenues of $849.7 million, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $841.2 million. The figure marked an increase from $824.4 million in the same period last year.

Its second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of 76 cents also outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 72 cents. The upside was driven by growth across all regions and most end markets.

The company's earnings surpassed estimates in three of the last four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 6.6%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 earnings is currently pegged at $2.65 per share, indicating 12.3% year-over-year growth. The estimate has been revised upward by 2% in the past 90 days.

Following its solid second-quarter performance, Avient raised its full-year guidance. The company expects adjusted EPS of 62 cents for the third quarter, suggesting a 9% year-over-year increase. Both business segments are projected to contribute to organic sales growth, further driving earnings. Although the demand outlook for the second half remains consistent with May projections, robust second-quarter results led to an updated full-year forecast. AVNT anticipates adjusted EBITDA to be between $515 million and $540 million, up from the previous range of $510-$535 million. The adjusted EPS guidance has been lifted to the range of $2.55-$2.70 compared with the earlier estimate of $2.50-$2.65.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

AVNT currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Newmont Corporation, Carpenter Technology Corporation and Eldorado Gold Corporation, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Newmont's current-year earnings is pegged at $2.82, indicating a rise of 75% from the year-ago levels. The consensus mark for NEM's earnings has increased 16% in the past 60 days.The stock has gained nearly 33.9% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CRS's current-year earnings is pegged at $6.06, indicating a rise of 27.9% from the year-ago levels. CRS's earnings beat the consensus estimate in all of the last four quarters, with the average surprise being 15.9%. The stock has rallied nearly 139.1% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Eldorado Gold's current year earnings is pegged at $1.35 per share, indicating a year-over-year rise of 136.8%. EGO beat the consensus estimate in each of the last four quarters, with the average earnings surprise being 430.3%. The company's shares have rallied nearly 93% in the past year.

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