Royal Bank Of Canada Has Lowered Expectations for Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Stock Price

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada lowered Westlake’s price target from $95 to $74 while maintaining an “outperform” rating, implying 18.89% upside from the stock’s $62.24 price.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Westlake has an overall “hold” consensus, with four buy, ten hold, and two sell ratings; the average price target is $83.87.
• Westlake shares remain well below their 12-month high of $124.23, despite the company beating quarterly EPS and revenue estimates and reporting 10.8% year-over-year revenue growth.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) had its price objective cut by Royal Bank Of Canada from $95.00 to $74.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock. Royal Bank Of Canada's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 18.89% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Mizuho set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Westlake in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Westlake in a research note on Friday, September 11th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $92.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $67.00 price target (down from $85.00) on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, October 5th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $89.00 to $68.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $83.87.

Westlake Stock Performance

Shares of WLK stock traded up $0.39 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $62.24. 51,748 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,146,015. Westlake has a twelve month low of $56.33 and a twelve month high of $124.23. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $72.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.95 billion, a PE ratio of -6.51 and a beta of 0.69.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.18. Westlake had a positive return on equity of 0.93% and a negative net margin of 10.94%. The business had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($1.11) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Westlake will post 2.98 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Westlake news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 38,873 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.28, for a total value of $3,120,724.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 642,880 shares in the company, valued at $51,610,406.40. The trade was a 5.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Westlake by 133.8% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 830 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $97,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in Westlake during the second quarter worth approximately $69,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Westlake by 219.4% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 955 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Westlake during the second quarter worth approximately $80,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Westlake by 58,450.0% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,171 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 1,169 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company's stock.

About Westlake

Westlake Corporation NYSE: WLK is a global manufacturer of performance and essential materials used in construction, infrastructure, packaging, healthcare, automotive, and consumer products. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, the company operates through businesses focused on producing chemical building blocks, polymers, and specialty materials.

Its product portfolio includes polyvinyl chloride (PVC), chlor-alkali products such as caustic soda and chlorine, polyethylene, epoxy and specialty resins, and other performance chemicals.

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