Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Price Target Raised to $99.00 at Truist Financial

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its price target hoisted by Truist Financial from $82.00 to $99.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Truist Financial currently has a buy rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on WLK. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Westlake and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Mizuho set a $88.00 price objective on shares of Westlake and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $92.00 target price (down previously from $93.00) on shares of Westlake in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the company from $87.00 to $84.00 in a report on Monday, November 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.47.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of WLK stock opened at $86.58 on Wednesday. Westlake has a twelve month low of $56.33 and a twelve month high of $119.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $72.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $77.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.67, a P/E/G ratio of 38.58 and a beta of 0.91.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.29) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.47). The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.97 billion. Westlake had a negative net margin of 8.34% and a negative return on equity of 0.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.41 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Westlake will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 25th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 25th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is currently -28.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Westlake news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 40,836 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chairman owned 627,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,181,507.54. This trade represents a 6.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Huntington National Bank purchased a new stake in Westlake during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the third quarter valued at $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Westlake by 107.0% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 565 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Westlake by 54.5% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 567 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Westlake by 49.9% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 640 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Westlake

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.