96,200 Shares in Westlake Corporation $WLK Purchased by Thomist Capital Management LP

Thomist Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 96,200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,023,000. Westlake accounts for 2.2% of Thomist Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Thomist Capital Management LP owned 0.08% of Westlake at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 4,386,635 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $324,348,000 after purchasing an additional 472,224 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Westlake by 7,239.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,220,717 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $312,080,000 after buying an additional 4,163,207 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Westlake by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,917,329 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $289,647,000 after buying an additional 477,698 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Westlake during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $240,474,000. Finally, Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Westlake during the 4th quarter worth approximately $160,548,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Westlake Stock Performance

NYSE:WLK opened at $76.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a PE ratio of -7.99 and a beta of 0.63. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $76.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 1.70. Westlake Corporation has a 12 month low of $56.33 and a 12 month high of $124.23.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced 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 company had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. Westlake had a positive return on equity of 0.93% and a negative net margin of 10.94%.Westlake’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($1.11) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Westlake Corporation will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.533 per share. This is a boost from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $2.13 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is -22.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.28, for a total transaction of $3,120,724.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 642,880 shares in the company, valued at $51,610,406.40. The trade was a 5.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WLK has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. 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, August 6th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $117.00 target price (down from $130.00) on shares of Westlake in a report on Friday, June 5th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Westlake from $110.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.92.

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.