Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.41 EPS

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) announced its earnings results on Tuesday. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.41, Briefing.com reports. The business had revenue of $3.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. Westlake had a return on equity of 7.69% and a net margin of 2.13%. Westlake’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WLK traded down $0.53 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $143.48. 598,409 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 433,605. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.45 billion, a PE ratio of 72.10, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.20. Westlake has a 52 week low of $112.77 and a 52 week high of $162.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company’s 50 day moving average is $147.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $147.73.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is presently 100.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WLK shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 14th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Westlake from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Westlake from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $160.55.

Westlake Company Profile

Westlake Corporation engages in the manufacture and marketing of performance and essential materials, and housing and infrastructure products in the United States, Canada, Germany, China, Mexico, Brazil, France, Italy, Taiwan, and internationally. The company operates through two segments: Performance and Essential Materials and Housing and Infrastructure Products.