Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) Stock Holdings Lifted by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its stake in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,123 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Westlake were worth $5,616,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WLK. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Westlake by 51.3% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Westlake by 55.9% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 354 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $87,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Westlake from $140.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Vertical Research cut shares of Westlake from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $154.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.79.

Westlake Price Performance

NYSE:WLK opened at $152.25 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $19.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.51, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.30. Westlake Co. has a one year low of $103.28 and a one year high of $162.64. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $148.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.83.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.93 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 7.69%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.05 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Westlake Co. will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. Westlake’s payout ratio is currently 100.50%.

Insider Activity at Westlake

In other Westlake news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,055,308. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Westlake news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,055,308. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,854 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.57, for a total transaction of $667,764.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,110 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,893,632.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,658 shares of company stock worth $1,923,225 in the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.