Brokerages Set Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) Target Price at $159.83

Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $159.83.

Several analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on Westlake from $160.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays raised shares of Westlake from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $162.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Westlake from $171.00 to $165.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Westlake from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Bank of America raised Westlake from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $159.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th.

Westlake Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE WLK opened at $113.62 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $123.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $136.64. The stock has a market cap of $14.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 160.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.18. Westlake has a 52-week low of $110.76 and a 52-week high of $162.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.79.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.21 by ($0.80). Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The company had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Westlake will post 6.47 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th were issued a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is currently 295.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In other Westlake news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.08, for a total value of $225,890.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,004,758.72. This trade represents a 18.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 74.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Westlake by 43.2% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in Westlake by 8,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 340 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Westlake by 72.0% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Westlake by 84.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 531 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 3rd quarter worth $62,000. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

About Westlake

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.