Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Sells 959 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 19,809 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 959 shares during the quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Westlake were worth $2,772,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WLK. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in Westlake during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake in the first quarter worth $28,000. Gyon Technologies Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Westlake in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Westlake by 51.3% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Westlake in the second quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Westlake from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. UBS Group raised their price target on Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Vertical Research lowered Westlake from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $154.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America raised Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Westlake from $139.00 to $134.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $144.43.

Westlake Stock Performance

Shares of WLK stock opened at $148.95 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $146.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.09. Westlake Co. has a 12 month low of $103.28 and a 12 month high of $162.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.26, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by ($0.09). Westlake had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.70%. The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.79 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Westlake Co. will post 6.93 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,055,308. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,055,308. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total value of $677,460.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,306 shares in the company, valued at $6,389,052.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,658 shares of company stock valued at $1,923,225 over the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Westlake

Westlake Corporation engages in the manufacture and marketing of performance and essential materials, and housing and infrastructure products in the United States, Canada, Germany, China, Mexico, Brazil, France, Italy, Taiwan, and internationally. The company operates through two segments: Performance and Essential Materials and Housing and Infrastructure Products.