Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Purchases 102,268 Shares of Westlake Corp. $WLK

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs has increased its stake in Westlake Corp. by 10.9%, acquiring an additional 102,268 shares, bringing their total to over 1 million shares worth approximately $104.15 million.
• Westlake has announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.47 to $0.53 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.4% for investors.
• Despite recent share price fluctuations, analysts have varying price targets for Westlake, with the average target set at $92.29 and most analysts maintaining a "buy" rating.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Westlake Corp. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 10.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,041,190 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 102,268 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.81% of Westlake worth $104,150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 251.1% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 316 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 127.1% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 427 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 71.9% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 514 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 33.9% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 525 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its position in Westlake by 3,005.6% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 559 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the period. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Performance

NYSE WLK opened at $88.11 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average is $84.06 and its 200-day moving average is $86.63. Westlake Corp. has a 12-month low of $68.55 and a 12-month high of $151.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $11.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -166.25 and a beta of 0.92.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.06 by ($0.15). Westlake had a negative net margin of 0.57% and a positive return on equity of 1.26%. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.40 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Westlake Corp. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a boost from Westlake's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Westlake's payout ratio is currently -400.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on WLK shares. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Westlake from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Westlake from $117.00 to $92.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Westlake from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Westlake from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Westlake from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $92.29.

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.

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