Merewether Investment Management LP Purchases 45,801 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Merewether Investment Management LP lifted its position in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 20.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 269,167 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 45,801 shares during the quarter. Westlake accounts for 1.9% of Merewether Investment Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Merewether Investment Management LP’s holdings in Westlake were worth $40,453,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP bought a new position in shares of Westlake during the third quarter valued at about $55,542,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Westlake by 699.1% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 595,149 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $89,445,000 after purchasing an additional 520,669 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Westlake by 84.0% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 201,405 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $30,269,000 after purchasing an additional 91,973 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Westlake in the third quarter worth about $2,193,000. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,580,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $227,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,239,420. The trade was a 15.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WLK opened at $126.68 on Wednesday. Westlake Co. has a 1 year low of $118.64 and a 1 year high of $162.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 178.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s 50-day moving average is $136.11 and its 200 day moving average is $143.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.04.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 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 business had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Westlake Co. will post 6.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is presently 295.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group cut their price target on Westlake from $160.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Westlake from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays upgraded Westlake from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $162.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Mizuho began coverage on Westlake in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Westlake from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Westlake presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.17.

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.