Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK – Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 16,907 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,234,000.
A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Westlake during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Westlake in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Westlake by 71.3% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 562 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in Westlake during the third quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Westlake by 49.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 745 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several analysts have commented on WLK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price target (up from $89.00) on shares of Westlake in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $106.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Westlake from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on Westlake from $110.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $93.92.
Insider Activity at Westlake
In other news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 38,873 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.28, for a total transaction 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 represents a 5.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.
Westlake Stock Performance
WLK stock opened at $78.96 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.24 and a beta of 0.63. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.53. Westlake Corporation has a one year low of $56.33 and a one year high of $124.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.45.
Westlake (NYSE:WLK – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.18. Westlake had a negative net margin of 10.94% and a positive return on equity of 0.93%. The firm had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.11) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Westlake Corporation will post 3.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Westlake Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.533 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. This is a boost from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Westlake’s payout ratio is currently -22.13%.
About Westlake
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.
Operating a network of vertically integrated plants and distribution centers, Westlake serves markets in North America, Europe and Asia.
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