Westlake Co. to Post FY2024 Earnings of $6.53 Per Share, Zacks Research Forecasts (NYSE:WLK)

Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) – Analysts at Zacks Research raised their FY2024 earnings estimates for Westlake in a report released on Monday, May 20th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the specialty chemicals company will earn $6.53 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $6.40. The consensus estimate for Westlake’s current full-year earnings is $6.57 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Westlake’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.50 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.88 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $2.11 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.37 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $1.05 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Westlake from $140.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays raised their target price on Westlake from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Bank of America raised Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Westlake from $134.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $151.00.

Westlake Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:WLK opened at $157.25 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Westlake has a 12-month low of $103.28 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The business has a 50 day moving average of $152.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $141.83. The company has a market capitalization of $20.22 billion, a PE ratio of 79.02, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.30.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.25. Westlake had a return on equity of 7.69% and a net margin of 2.13%. The business had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.05 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 11.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WLK. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 51.3% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,528 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,473,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in shares of Westlake by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 17,569 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,190,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Westlake by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 3,302 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $504,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Capital Group California Inc. lifted its stake in Westlake by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 4,256 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $596,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,950 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.19, for a total transaction of $753,340.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 40,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,141,779.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,950 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.19, for a total value of $753,340.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 40,356 shares in the company, valued at $6,141,779.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,055,308. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,608 shares of company stock worth $2,676,565 in the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.50%.

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.