James Investment Research Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

James Investment Research Inc. decreased its position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,418 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 141 shares during the quarter. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in Westlake were worth $392,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WLK. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in Westlake in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $75,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its position in Westlake by 96.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 4,503 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $677,000 after buying an additional 2,205 shares during the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Westlake in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $209,000. Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new stake in Westlake in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $292,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Westlake by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 19,420 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,919,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WLK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Westlake from $155.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Westlake from $171.00 to $165.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Truist Financial began coverage on Westlake in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $168.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Westlake from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $152.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.79.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of WLK stock opened at $115.30 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $14.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 162.40, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.17. The business’s fifty day moving average is $115.09 and its 200 day moving average is $130.34. Westlake Co. has a twelve month low of $108.56 and a twelve month high of $162.64. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Westlake 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.