LPL Financial LLC Has $3.04 Million Position in 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 increased its stake in shares of Westlake Corp. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 17.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund 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 quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV boosted its stake in Westlake by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 4,877 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $557,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Westlake by 33.9% in 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. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in Westlake by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,007 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $345,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Peterson Wealth Services raised its holdings in Westlake by 2.8% in the first quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 6,578 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $658,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Westlake by 71.9% in 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. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:WLK traded down $0.27 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $83.29. 433,227 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,029,258. Westlake Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $68.55 and a fifty-two week high of $153.34. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $89.61. The firm has a market cap of $10.68 billion, a PE ratio of -157.38, a P/E/G ratio of 366.14 and a beta of 0.92.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last issued 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 analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.40 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Westlake Corp. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. This is an increase from Westlake's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Westlake's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -396.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WLK shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Westlake from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Westlake from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Westlake from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. upgraded shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One equities research 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.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.29.

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.