BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Raises Position in Westlake Corporation $WLK

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) by 497.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,043 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,006 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in Westlake were worth $4,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Westlake by 90.0% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 38,687 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,869,000 after buying an additional 18,321 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 19,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,881,000 after acquiring an additional 1,668 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the 1st quarter worth about $211,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 43.6% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,350 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 18.2% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 3,788 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Stock Down 3.1%

WLK opened at $77.77 on Tuesday. Westlake Corporation has a 1 year low of $56.33 and a 1 year high of $124.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $96.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $94.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.17. The company has a market cap of $9.96 billion, a PE ratio of -6.12 and a beta of 0.58.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.67). Westlake had a negative return on equity of 1.89% and a negative net margin of 14.91%.The business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.31) earnings per share. Westlake’s quarterly revenue was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Westlake Corporation will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Westlake’s payout ratio is presently -16.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on WLK shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Westlake from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Westlake from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $108.00 to $127.00 in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Westlake in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Westlake from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Westlake from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.36.

Westlake Profile

Westlake Corp. is a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, polymers and building products, serving customers across industrial and residential markets. The company’s core operations encompass the production of vinyls—primarily polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and its key feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)—as well as chlor-alkali products including caustic soda and chlorine. In addition, Westlake produces ethylene, propylene and specialty elastomers, along with construction-related materials such as vinyl siding, trim, windows and roofing systems.

Operating a network of vertically integrated plants and distribution centers, Westlake serves markets in North America, Europe and Asia.