Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Stock Rating Lowered by Mizuho

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) was downgraded by research analysts at Mizuho from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $88.00 target price on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Mizuho’s target price suggests a potential downside of 8.31% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $83.00 price target (down from $91.00) on shares of Westlake in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $78.00 price objective on Westlake and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Truist Financial upped their target price on Westlake from $82.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $80.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Westlake has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $89.47.

Westlake Trading Up 4.1%

Shares of WLK stock opened at $95.98 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 48.29 and a beta of 0.90. Westlake has a 1 year low of $56.33 and a 1 year high of $118.23. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $78.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 40,836 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.57, for a total transaction of $3,004,304.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 627,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,181,507.54. This trade represents a 6.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WLK. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in Westlake by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,433 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Westlake by 0.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 28,134 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 4.1% during the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 5,020 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 54.5% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 567 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 28,483 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,106,000 after buying an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

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.