Journey Advisory Group LLC Acquires New Position in Westlake Corporation $WLK

Key Points

• Journey Advisory Group LLC acquired 44,842 shares of Westlake Corporation, valued at approximately $3,405,000, indicating growing institutional interest in the specialty chemicals firm.
• Westlake's stock recently decreased by 1.2% and currently trades at $75.14, with analysts predicting an average target price of $91.64.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.53, translating to an annualized amount of $2.12 and a yield of 2.8%.

Journey Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 44,842 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $3,405,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Westlake by 251.1% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 316 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Westlake by 127.1% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 427 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Westlake by 71.9% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 514 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in Westlake by 3,005.6% during the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 559 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Westlake by 107.0% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 565 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company's stock.

Westlake Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $75.14 on Monday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $82.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Westlake Corporation has a 52-week low of $68.55 and a 52-week high of $140.79. The company has a market cap of $9.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -141.77 and a beta of 0.93.

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

Westlake Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 19th. This is an increase from Westlake's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Westlake's payout ratio is presently -400.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WLK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $100.00 to $93.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Mizuho set a $90.00 price target on shares of Westlake and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Westlake from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Westlake from $98.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.64.

Westlake 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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