Westlake Corporation $WLK Shares Purchased by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) by 21.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,951 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,681 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in Westlake were worth $12,144,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Westlake by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 19,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,881,000 after buying an additional 1,668 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in Westlake during the 1st quarter worth $211,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Westlake by 43.6% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,350 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its position in Westlake by 18.2% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 3,788 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $288,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Westlake in the second quarter valued at $616,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WLK opened at $77.58 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.86. Westlake Corporation has a one year low of $56.33 and a one year high of $124.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.10 and a beta of 0.63.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.24 billion. Westlake had a positive return on equity of 0.93% and a negative net margin of 10.94%.The business’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($1.11) earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Westlake Corporation will post 3.32 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -22.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on WLK. Wall Street Zen upgraded Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Westlake from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Westlake from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (up from $89.00) on shares of Westlake in a research note on Thursday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.92.

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.