Drummond Knight Asset Management Pty Ltd Purchases New Stake in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Drummond Knight Asset Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 85,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $9,745,000. Westlake comprises about 7.1% of Drummond Knight Asset Management Pty Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Drummond Knight Asset Management Pty Ltd owned 0.07% of Westlake as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WLK. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Westlake by 247.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in Westlake by 6,316.7% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 385 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Westlake by 1,668.2% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 389 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Westlake by 72.0% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new position in Westlake during the 4th quarter worth $71,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Westlake Price Performance

WLK traded up $6.20 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $86.20. 524,594 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 596,690. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.05 billion, a PE ratio of 121.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03. The business's 50-day moving average price is $95.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $111.05. Westlake Co. has a 1-year low of $76.97 and a 1-year high of $161.31.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.31) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. Westlake's revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. Westlake's payout ratio is 70.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on WLK. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $130.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $132.00 to $117.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $130.00 to $116.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Westlake from $135.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.