LPL Financial LLC Buys 4,493 Shares of Westlake Corp. $WLK

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its position in Westlake Corp. by 17.3% during the first quarter, bringing its total to 30,421 shares valued at approximately $3 million.
• Westlake Corp. missed earnings expectations in its last quarterly report, posting a loss of $0.09 per share against an expected profit of $0.06, with revenues declining by 7.9% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.53 per share, up from $0.47, indicating a 2.5% dividend yield for its investors.

LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Westlake Corp. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 17.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,421 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,493 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in Westlake were worth $3,043,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in Westlake by 251.1% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 316 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Westlake by 127.1% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 427 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Westlake by 71.9% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 514 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Westlake by 33.9% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 525 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new position in Westlake during the fourth quarter worth $71,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Price Performance

WLK traded down $0.0090 on Thursday, hitting $82.7410. 688,225 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,459,450. Westlake Corp. has a 12 month low of $68.55 and a 12 month high of $153.34. The business has a 50-day moving average of $80.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $89.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -156.11, a PEG ratio of 363.81 and a beta of 0.92.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.40 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Westlake Corp. will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. This is a positive change from Westlake's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Westlake's payout ratio is presently -400.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Westlake from $135.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. 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. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Westlake from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Westlake from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. One investment 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $92.29.

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.