Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 89,200 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $6,512,000. Alberta Investment Management Corp owned about 0.07% of Westlake as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 8,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $935,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 4,108 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $304,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Westlake by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 28,134 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Westlake by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,522 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $178,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its position in Westlake by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 6,868 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $802,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company's stock.
Insider Activity
In other Westlake news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 38,873 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.28, for a total transaction of $3,120,724.44. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 642,880 shares in the company, valued at $51,610,406.40. This represents a 5.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.
Westlake Stock Performance
Westlake stock opened at $79.53 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $77.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $93.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.45. Westlake Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $56.33 and a fifty-two week high of $124.23. The company has a market capitalization of $10.16 billion, a PE ratio of -8.30 and a beta of 0.63.
Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.24 billion. Westlake had a positive return on equity of 0.93% and a negative net margin of 10.94%.Westlake's revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.11) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Westlake Corporation will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current year.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
WLK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Westlake from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Westlake in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Westlake from $127.00 to $104.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 20th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Westlake from $110.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price objective on Westlake in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Westlake has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $93.92.
Read Our Latest Report on WLK
Westlake Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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