Oppenheimer upgrades Avient to Outperform on margin uplift despite headwinds

As previously reported, Oppenheimer analyst Kristen Owen upgraded Avient to Outperform from Perform with a $50 price target following its strong operational Q4 results, despite the challenging demand/de-stocking environment. With management calling for continued macro headwinds in Q1, and what the firm believes to be a normalization of customer inventory levels, Oppenheimer sees the potential for run-rate revenue to bottom in the first half of the year. The firm sees early evidence of the pure-play specialty formulator playbook structurally lifting total company EBITDA margins, which becomes increasingly valuable as Avient continues to de-lever post its Dyneema acquisition.