Truist Financial Corp Sells 3,389 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Truist Financial Corp lessened its stake in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 31.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,233 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 3,389 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in Westlake were worth $1,047,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 4th quarter valued at about $308,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in Westlake by 30.2% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,145 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $328,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Westlake in the first quarter worth approximately $420,000. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 3,302 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $504,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 1st quarter valued at $1,273,000. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Westlake Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of WLK stock opened at $144.20 on Monday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $18.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 69.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.17. Westlake Co. has a 12-month low of $112.77 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $143.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $148.58.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $3.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.22 billion. Westlake had a return on equity of 7.84% and a net margin of 2.27%. The company’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.31 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. This is a positive change from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WLK shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Westlake from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Westlake from $172.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays raised shares of Westlake from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $162.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Westlake from $174.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $167.17.

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.