Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Chairman Albert Chao Sells 40,836 Shares

24 Dec 2025, 10:44 by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets Daily

Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK – Get Free Report) Chairman Albert Chao sold 40,836 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.57, for a total value of $3,004,304.52. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 627,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,181,507.54. This trade represents a 6.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Westlake Price Performance

WLK stock opened at $73.25 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a market capitalization of $9.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.87 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $69.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.19. Westlake Corporation has a twelve month low of $56.33 and a twelve month high of $119.86.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.29) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.47). The business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Westlake had a negative net margin of 8.34% and a negative return on equity of 0.78%. The business’s revenue was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Westlake Corporation will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 25th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is -28.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on WLK. Bank of America raised Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $87.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective (up from $75.00) on shares of Westlake in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Mizuho set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Westlake and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $87.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $83.00 price target (down from $91.00) on shares of Westlake in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.60.

Check Out Our Latest Report on WLK

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Westlake by 2.9% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 314,618 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,471,000 after buying an additional 8,955 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $581,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 1st quarter worth approximately $232,000. Walleye Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 377.1% in the 1st quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 34,377 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,439,000 after acquiring an additional 27,172 shares during the period. Finally, Comerica Bank increased its stake in Westlake by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 30,638 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,065,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Westlake Corp. is a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, polymers and building products, serving customers across industrial and residential markets. The company’s core operations encompass the production of vinyls—primarily polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and its key feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)—as well as chlor-alkali products including caustic soda and chlorine. In addition, Westlake produces ethylene, propylene and specialty elastomers, along with construction-related materials such as vinyl siding, trim, windows and roofing systems.