Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Price Target Raised to $110.00

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its target price hoisted by Mizuho from $97.00 to $110.00 in a research report report published on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on WLK. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Westlake from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Westlake from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $108.00 to $127.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Westlake in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Westlake from $82.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, March 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.33.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WLK opened at $114.22 on Monday. Westlake has a twelve month low of $56.33 and a twelve month high of $116.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $14.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.76 and a beta of 0.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $98.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.69.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $1.22. Westlake had a negative net margin of 13.50% and a negative return on equity of 1.22%. The company had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.06 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Westlake will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -18.12%.

Insider Transactions at Westlake

In other Westlake news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 17,409 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.92, for a total transaction of $1,756,916.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,484,178.36. The trade was a 28.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Westlake in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Westlake during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Westlake by 71.3% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 562 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Westlake in the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Westlake by 180.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 740 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

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.