Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $162.17.

WLK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays upgraded shares of Westlake from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $162.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Monday, September 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Westlake from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com downgraded Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Westlake in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Westlake from $171.00 to $165.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WLK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the 1st quarter valued at $43,000. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in Westlake by 43.2% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Westlake by 8,400.0% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 340 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Westlake during the third quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Westlake in the second quarter worth about $66,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Down 0.0 %

WLK stock opened at $126.98 on Wednesday. Westlake has a twelve month low of $118.64 and a twelve month high of $162.64. The company has a market cap of $16.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 178.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.19. 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 has a 50 day moving average price of $138.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.98.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.21 by ($0.80). The business had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.31 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Westlake will post 6.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. Westlake’s payout ratio is currently 295.77%.

Westlake Company Profile

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.