Janus Henderson Group PLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Westlake Corporation $WLK

Janus Henderson Group PLC lowered its stake in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) by 19.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 269,783 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 64,810 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Westlake were worth $31,518,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WLK. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Westlake in the third quarter worth about $28,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 71.3% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 562 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Westlake by 49.6% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 745 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Stock Performance

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $70.59 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.04 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.56 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $79.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $94.29. Westlake Corporation has a 52 week low of $56.33 and a 52 week high of $124.23.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.67). Westlake had a negative return on equity of 1.89% and a negative net margin of 14.91%.The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.31) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Westlake Corporation will post 3.2 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Westlake’s payout ratio is presently -16.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WLK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Westlake from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price target on Westlake in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Westlake from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Westlake in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.64.

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.