Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) released its earnings results on Tuesday. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $1.22, Zacks reports. Westlake had a negative return on equity of 0.78% and a negative net margin of 8.34%.The business had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Westlake Price Performance

WLK stock opened at $92.87 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $84.64 and a 200-day moving average of $79.12. The company has a market cap of $11.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.52, a PEG ratio of 47.52 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Westlake has a 12-month low of $56.33 and a 12-month high of $114.75.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -28.57%.

More Westlake News

Here are the key news stories impacting Westlake this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 quarterly beat — Westlake reported Q4 EPS of ($0.25), beating consensus of ($1.33) by $1.08; management provided a press release and slide deck with details (helping today’s upside). Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Asia growth push — Westlake’s epoxy distribution partner Brenntag will expand the partnership into India, broadening the company’s Asia‑Pacific channel reach and targeting infrastructure/industrial demand growth. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend maintained — Westlake declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53/share (record Mar 3, pay Mar 18), a cash return that supports income investor interest and likely lifted sentiment. (Dividend yield ~2.3% as previously reported.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Board changes — The company appointed Bhavesh V. “Bob” Patel and elected CEO Jean‑Marc Gilson to the board; adds industry experience but is largely governance‑level news. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) update — The partner reported a Q4 recovery and maintained its distribution, which supports cash flow to related entities but is an indirect driver for WLK. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst preview/coverage — Earnings previews and analyst notes circulated ahead of results; useful for context but not a direct catalyst. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Full‑year weakness — Despite the Q4 beat, Westlake reported a challenging 2025 with significant losses, negative net margin (~‑8.3%) and minimal ROE, signaling continued macro/operational headwinds that could pressure earnings normalization. Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on WLK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Westlake and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $87.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $80.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 price objective (down previously from $93.00) on shares of Westlake in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Westlake in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In related news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 40,836 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.57, for a total value 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Westlake

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 7,239.1% during 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. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Westlake by 45.0% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,885,678 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $139,431,000 after acquiring an additional 585,438 shares during the last quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its holdings in Westlake by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 4,386,635 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $324,348,000 after acquiring an additional 472,224 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in Westlake by 118.1% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 66,613 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,925,000 after acquiring an additional 435,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Westlake by 495.8% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 475,743 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $36,661,000 after acquiring an additional 395,896 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.