Analysts Set Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) Price Target at $166.83

Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $166.83.

WLK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Mizuho started coverage on Westlake in a report on Thursday, August 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised Westlake from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $157.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Westlake from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Westlake from $172.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th.

Westlake Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WLK opened at $139.36 on Friday. Westlake has a 12-month low of $112.77 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The company has a current ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap of $17.92 billion, a PE ratio of 70.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $148.44.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.41. Westlake had a return on equity of 7.84% and a net margin of 2.27%. The company had revenue of $3.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Westlake will post 6.95 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 20th. This is an increase from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is 105.53%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 66,606 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $9,322,000 after purchasing an additional 1,570 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 3,562 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $499,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 40,123 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,616,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its holdings in shares of Westlake by 1,360.8% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,490 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 1,388 shares in the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.