Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have assigned a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $102.20.

WLK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Westlake in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Westlake from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Westlake from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd.

Westlake Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $113.19 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $99.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.07. Westlake has a 52-week low of $56.33 and a 52-week high of $116.46. The firm has a market cap of $14.48 billion, a PE ratio of -9.67 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.24.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.25) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $1.22. Westlake had a negative return on equity of 1.22% and a negative net margin of 13.50%.The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.06 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Westlake will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Westlake’s payout ratio is -18.12%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 17,409 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.92, for a total transaction of $1,756,916.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 44,433 shares in the company, valued at $4,484,178.36. This represents a 28.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aventail Capital Group LP acquired a new position in shares of Westlake during the 3rd quarter worth about $6,037,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 2nd quarter valued at about $104,314,000. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in Westlake by 61.3% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 117,151 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,028,000 after purchasing an additional 44,525 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in Westlake by 142.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 25,833 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,963,000 after purchasing an additional 15,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP grew its holdings in Westlake by 246.0% during the second quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 1,456,871 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $110,621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,035,851 shares during the period. 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.