Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Stock Price

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its target price hoisted by Wells Fargo & Company from $110.00 to $125.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Westlake in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Westlake from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $80.00 target price on Westlake in a report on Monday, December 15th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Westlake from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.53.

Westlake Stock Down 0.0%

WLK opened at $119.38 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $103.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.33. Westlake has a twelve month low of $56.33 and a twelve month high of $120.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.24. The firm has a market cap of $15.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.20 and a beta of 0.75.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.25) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $2.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.06 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Westlake will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Westlake’s payout ratio is -18.12%.

Insider Activity at Westlake

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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,433 shares in the company, valued at $4,484,178.36. The trade was a 28.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 4,386,635 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $324,348,000 after buying an additional 472,224 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 7,239.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,220,717 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $312,080,000 after purchasing an additional 4,163,207 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Westlake by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,917,329 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $289,647,000 after purchasing an additional 477,698 shares during the period. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Westlake during the fourth quarter worth $160,548,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Westlake by 45.0% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,885,678 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $139,431,000 after buying an additional 585,438 shares in the last quarter. 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.