Cresset Asset Management LLC Sells 9,787 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Cresset Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 35.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,524 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 9,787 shares during the quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC's holdings in Westlake were worth $2,009,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WLK. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Westlake by 732.7% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 993,150 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $113,865,000 after acquiring an additional 873,888 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Westlake by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,313,847 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $379,933,000 after acquiring an additional 574,068 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Westlake in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,630,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Westlake by 56.8% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 827,516 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $94,875,000 after acquiring an additional 299,597 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group increased its stake in Westlake by 348.8% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 364,274 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $41,327,000 after acquiring an additional 283,100 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Trading Up 7.0%

Shares of NYSE:WLK traded up $5.62 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $85.62. 1,219,484 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 599,393. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 120.59, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03. The business's fifty day moving average price is $94.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $110.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.79. Westlake Co. has a twelve month low of $76.97 and a twelve month high of $161.31.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.31) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($1.01). Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The firm had revenue of $2.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 EPS. Westlake's quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Westlake's dividend payout ratio is presently 70.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WLK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $122.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Westlake from $132.00 to $117.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $105.00 target price (down previously from $120.00) on shares of Westlake in a research report on Monday, April 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Westlake from $125.00 to $103.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Westlake from $110.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $106.08.

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.