Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Westlake (NYSE:WLK) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday morning.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on WLK. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price objective on Westlake in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Zacks Research cut Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Mizuho lowered their target price on Westlake from $110.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Westlake from $104.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $93.92.

Westlake Stock Up 0.1%

Westlake stock opened at $77.58 on Friday. Westlake has a fifty-two week low of $56.33 and a fifty-two week 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $78.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.86. The company has a market capitalization of $9.92 billion, a PE 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.18. Westlake had a positive return on equity of 0.93% and a negative net margin of 10.94%.The company had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.11) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Westlake will post 3.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westlake

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Westlake in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 71.3% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 562 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in Westlake in the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Westlake by 49.6% in the second 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.