Industry Veteran’s Appointment Could Be a Game Changer for Avient’s (AVNT) Specialty Materials Strategy

• Avient Corporation recently appointed David N. Schneider as Senior Vice President and President of Specialty Engineered Materials, succeeding Christopher L. Pederson, who retired in June 2025 after seven years in the role.
• This leadership change brings decades of specialty materials experience from 3M to Avient, aligning with the company's renewed focus on high-growth segments and operational performance.
• We'll explore how the addition of an industry veteran to guide Avient's specialty materials expansion influences the company's investment narrative.

These 13 companies survived and thrived after COVID and have the right ingredients to survive Trump's tariffs. Discover why before your portfolio feels the trade war pinch.

Avient Investment Narrative Recap

Avient’s investment story centers on delivering value through expanding its specialty materials portfolio, with a focus on high-growth end-markets and operational efficiency. The appointment of David N. Schneider, an experienced industry leader from 3M, comes as Avient looks to enhance execution, but does not appear to materially change the near-term catalyst, demand recovery in key sectors, or mitigate the dominant risk of sustained weakness across core consumer end-markets.

Among recent announcements, the upcoming release of third-quarter 2025 earnings on November 5 stands out as particularly relevant. This event will offer updated insight into whether the leadership transition and strategy refresh are translating into improved revenue and margin trends, especially as input price volatility and sector demand shifts continue to test execution.

Yet, despite the potential that comes with new leadership, investors should keep in mind the ongoing challenge of broad-based end-market demand softness, as …

Read the full narrative on Avient (it's free!)

Avient's outlook anticipates $3.6 billion in revenue and $309.5 million in earnings by 2028. This scenario is based on a yearly revenue growth rate of 3.3% and an earnings increase of $190.6 million from current earnings of $118.9 million.

Uncover how Avient's forecasts yield a $43.25 fair value, a 32% upside to its current price.

Exploring Other Perspectives

Simply Wall St Community members provided two distinct fair value estimates for Avient, ranging from US$25.95 to US$53.09 per share. While opinions diverge widely, the ongoing risk tied to sluggish consumer end-markets remains a central consideration shaping long-term prospects.

Explore 2 other fair value estimates on Avient - why the stock might be worth 21% less than the current price!

Build Your Own Avient Narrative

Disagree with existing narratives? Create your own in under 3 minutes - extraordinary investment returns rarely come from following the herd.

• A great starting point for your Avient research is our analysis highlighting 5 key rewards and 2 important warning signs that could impact your investment decision.
• Our free Avient research report provides a comprehensive fundamental analysis summarized in a single visual - the Snowflake - making it easy to evaluate Avient's overall financial health at a glance.

No Opportunity In Avient?

Every day counts. These free picks are already gaining attention. See them before the crowd does:

• Find companies with promising cash flow potential yet trading below their fair value.
• AI is about to change healthcare. These 31 stocks are working on everything from early diagnostics to drug discovery. The best part - they are all under $10b in market cap - there's still time to get in early.
• Uncover the next big thing with financially sound penny stocks that balance risk and reward.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com