Ameriprise Financial Inc. Buys 3,588 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 107,396 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 3,588 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned about 0.08% of Westlake worth $12,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WLK. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Westlake by 247.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 6,316.7% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 385 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 1,668.2% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 389 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 4th quarter worth approximately $71,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 163.9% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 789 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on WLK shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Barclays reduced their price target on Westlake from $135.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Westlake from $110.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Westlake from $132.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Westlake from $122.00 to $96.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Westlake presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.69.

Westlake Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:WLK opened at $81.87 on Monday. Westlake Co. has a 52-week low of $76.97 and a 52-week high of $161.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.79. The company has a market capitalization of $10.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $92.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $109.34.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.31) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($1.01). The business had revenue of $2.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.47%.

Westlake Profile

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.