Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Price Target Cut to $92.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its price target lowered by Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $92.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target indicates a potential upside of 26.09% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on WLK. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Westlake from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Westlake in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup cut their target price on Westlake from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Westlake from $145.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on Westlake from $110.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.00.

Westlake Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE WLK opened at $72.96 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $94.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.17 and a quick ratio of 1.56. Westlake has a 1 year low of $56.33 and a 1 year high of $124.23. The firm has a market cap of $9.35 billion, a PE ratio of -5.75 and a beta of 0.62.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.31) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Westlake will post 3.81 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westlake

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Westlake in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake 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 acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Westlake during the 3rd quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 49.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 745 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

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.