State of Wyoming Takes Position in Westlake Corporation $WLK

State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 7,824 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $579,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Westlake in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Westlake by 71.3% in 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 during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake in the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 476 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Westlake by 49.6% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 745 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $84.40 on Friday. Westlake Corporation has a twelve month low of $56.33 and a twelve month high of $124.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $103.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $92.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.65 and a beta of 0.58.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.67). Westlake had a negative return on equity of 1.89% and a negative net margin of 14.91%.The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.31) EPS. Westlake’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Westlake Corporation will post 3.81 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Westlake’s payout ratio is -16.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WLK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $119.00 target price on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of Westlake from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $145.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, April 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Westlake has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.36.

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.