Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the sixteen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $107.3571.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on WLK shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Westlake from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $108.00 to $127.00 in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Zacks Research upgraded Westlake from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Westlake from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Westlake from $145.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $117.00 price objective (down from $130.00) on shares of Westlake in a report on Friday, June 5th.

Westlake Price Performance

NYSE:WLK opened at $83.43 on Thursday. Westlake has a 52 week low of $56.33 and a 52 week high of $124.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.69 billion, a PE ratio of -6.57 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $98.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.82.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.67). Westlake had a negative net margin of 14.91% and a negative return on equity of 1.89%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.31) earnings per share. Westlake’s revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Westlake will post 3.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Westlake’s payout ratio is presently -16.69%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westlake

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WLK. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Westlake by 7,239.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,220,717 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $312,080,000 after buying an additional 4,163,207 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Westlake in the 4th quarter worth about $160,548,000. Holocene Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 440.1% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 854,184 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $65,823,000 after purchasing an additional 696,029 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 45.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,885,678 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $139,431,000 after purchasing an additional 585,438 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,917,329 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $289,647,000 after purchasing an additional 477,698 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Westlake Company Profile

Westlake Corp. is a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, polymers and building products, serving customers across industrial and residential markets. The company’s core operations encompass the production of vinyls—primarily polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and its key feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)—as well as chlor-alkali products including caustic soda and chlorine. In addition, Westlake produces ethylene, propylene and specialty elastomers, along with construction-related materials such as vinyl siding, trim, windows and roofing systems.

Operating a network of vertically integrated plants and distribution centers, Westlake serves markets in North America, Europe and Asia.