Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Price Target Cut to $81.00 by Analysts at UBS Group

by · The Markets Daily

Westlake (NYSE:WLK – Free Report) had its price objective reduced by UBS Group from $86.00 to $81.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on WLK. Barclays began coverage on Westlake in a research report on Monday, October 12th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $66.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price objective on shares of Westlake in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Westlake from $95.00 to $74.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $67.00 target price (down from $85.00) on shares of Westlake in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.80.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Westlake

Westlake Price Performance

NYSE WLK opened at $66.27 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $8.47 billion, a PE ratio of -19.10 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.28. Westlake has a 52 week low of $56.33 and a 52 week high of $124.23.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.04). Westlake had a negative net margin of 3.91% and a positive return on equity of 1.99%. The company had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.29) earnings per share. Westlake’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Westlake will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th were issued a dividend of $0.5330 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $2.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -61.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In other Westlake news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 38,873 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.28, for a total value of $3,120,724.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 642,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,610,406.40. This trade represents a 5.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $19,544,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Westlake in the second quarter worth about $1,117,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Westlake in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $16,952,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the second quarter valued at $1,700,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Westlake during the 2nd quarter valued at about $240,474,000. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

About Westlake

(Get Free Report)

Westlake Corporation is a global manufacturer of performance and essential materials, as well as products used in housing and infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, the company serves customers in construction, packaging, healthcare, consumer products, automotive, and other industrial markets.

Westlake’s materials portfolio includes chlor-alkali and derivative chemicals, polyethylene, PVC, vinyl intermediates, epoxy resins, and other specialty products. These materials are used in applications such as water treatment, coatings, adhesives, plastics, medical products, and packaging.

Through its housing and infrastructure businesses, Westlake also produces building products including vinyl siding, trim, roofing products, pipe, fittings, and related components.

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