Handelsbanken Fonder AB Trims Stock Holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its stake in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 16.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,600 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,700 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Westlake were worth $986,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Westlake by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 552,646 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $82,837,000 after buying an additional 23,558 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake 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 worth $6,822,000 after purchasing an additional 12,833 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake 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 worth $7,377,000 after purchasing an additional 6,476 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in Westlake by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 98,056 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $11,242,000 after purchasing an additional 4,088 shares during the period. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its stake 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 worth $9,078,000 after purchasing an additional 5,512 shares during the period. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Performance

Shares of WLK opened at $110.37 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $113.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.64. 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 company has a market capitalization of $14.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 155.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.17. Westlake Co. has a 52-week low of $104.74 and a 52-week high of $162.64.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.98). The business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Westlake from $130.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Westlake from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group upgraded shares of Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Westlake from $160.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Westlake from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.07.

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.