Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Has $27.10 Million Stock Holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 236,354 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,992 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Westlake were worth $27,098,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WLK. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Westlake by 247.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its stake in Westlake by 43.2% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Westlake by 6,316.7% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 385 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Westlake in the third quarter valued at about $62,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Westlake by 72.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WLK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Westlake from $157.00 to $132.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Westlake from $160.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays decreased their price target on Westlake from $175.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Westlake from $168.00 to $166.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Westlake from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.07.

Westlake Stock Performance

WLK opened at $107.57 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $112.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $125.28. Westlake Co. has a 1 year low of $104.74 and a 1 year high of $162.64. The company has a market capitalization of $13.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 151.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.18. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.98). Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is 45.36%.

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.