Rhumbline Advisers Has $11.24 Million Stock Position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 98,056 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,088 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Westlake were worth $11,242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WLK. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Westlake by 4.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 552,646 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $82,837,000 after acquiring an additional 23,558 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Westlake by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 59,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $6,822,000 after purchasing an additional 12,833 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Westlake by 15.2% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 49,085 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $7,377,000 after purchasing an additional 6,476 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its holdings in Westlake by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 79,178 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,078,000 after purchasing an additional 5,512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Westlake by 88.3% during the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 18,789 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,154,000 after purchasing an additional 8,813 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Westlake

In related news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.08, for a total value of $225,890.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,004,758.72. This represents a 18.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 74.10% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $109.68 on Monday. Westlake Co. has a 12-month low of $108.56 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The stock has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 154.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The business’s 50 day moving average is $114.25 and its 200-day moving average is $129.38.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is currently 295.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. 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 note on Wednesday, November 6th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Westlake in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $168.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Westlake from $155.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Westlake from $170.00 to $167.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.79.

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.