Deutsche Bank AG Raises Holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 14.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 38,583 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,887 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG's holdings in Westlake were worth $4,424,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 247.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 6,316.7% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 385 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 379 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 1,668.2% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 389 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the fourth quarter worth $71,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 163.9% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 789 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America upgraded Westlake from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $116.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Westlake from $122.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Westlake from $144.00 to $127.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Westlake from $110.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Westlake from $130.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $105.69.

Westlake Stock Down 2.6%

Westlake stock opened at $79.95 on Tuesday. Westlake Co. has a fifty-two week low of $76.97 and a fifty-two week high of $161.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.79. The company has a market capitalization of $10.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 112.61, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $92.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $108.97.

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

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. Westlake's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.47%.

About Westlake

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.

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