Fifth Third Bancorp Acquires 15,483 Shares of Westlake Corporation $WLK

Key Points

• Fifth Third Bancorp increased its Westlake stake by 2,755% in the first quarter, buying 15,483 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 16,045 shares worth about $1.87 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted their positions, and institutional ownership now stands at 28.40% of Westlake’s stock.
• Analysts remain cautious on Westlake: the consensus rating is “Hold” with an average price target of $97.64, while recent earnings missed expectations and the stock traded around $77.10.

Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 2,755.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,045 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 15,483 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp's holdings in Westlake were worth $1,874,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WLK. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 90.0% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 38,687 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,869,000 after purchasing an additional 18,321 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Westlake by 9.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 19,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,881,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Westlake during the first quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 43.6% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,350 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 18.2% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 3,788 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Westlake from $110.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Bank of America dropped their target price on Westlake from $104.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Westlake from $145.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Westlake from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $97.64.

Westlake Trading Up 1.2%

Westlake stock opened at $77.10 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.58. The company has a market cap of $9.88 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.07 and a beta of 0.62. Westlake Corporation has a 52-week low of $56.33 and a 52-week high of $124.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.67). Westlake had a negative net margin of 14.91% and a negative return on equity of 1.89%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.31) EPS. The company's revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Westlake Corporation will post 3.27 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Westlake's dividend payout ratio is presently -16.69%.

About Westlake

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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