Intech Investment Management LLC Takes $337,000 Position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 2,324 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $337,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WLK. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake in the first quarter valued at about $1,273,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Westlake in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,254,000. Comerica Bank increased its holdings in shares of Westlake by 17.9% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 24,490 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,742,000 after purchasing an additional 3,710 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the second quarter worth approximately $544,000. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Westlake in the 1st quarter valued at $207,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on WLK. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Westlake from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Westlake from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Westlake from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $157.00 to $174.00 in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Westlake from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $166.00.

Westlake Stock Up 0.0 %

Westlake stock opened at $150.09 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $143.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $148.65. Westlake Co. has a one year low of $112.77 and a one year high of $162.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.61.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $3.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 7.84%. Westlake’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.31 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Westlake Co. will post 7.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. This is a positive change from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Westlake’s payout ratio is 105.53%.

About Westlake

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.