Man Group plc Has $4.45 Million Position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Man Group plc reduced its position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 55.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,799 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 48,206 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc's holdings in Westlake were worth $4,448,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Westlake during the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,480,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Westlake by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 59,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $6,822,000 after acquiring an additional 12,833 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its holdings in Westlake by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,246 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Westlake by 247.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Westlake during the 4th quarter worth approximately $361,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of Westlake stock traded up $1.37 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $72.90. 1,358,695 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 642,024. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.04. Westlake Co. has a 1-year low of $70.28 and a 1-year high of $161.31. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $88.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.35 billion, a PE ratio of 102.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.31) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($1.01). Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The company had revenue of $2.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Westlake's payout ratio is presently 70.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WLK shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $76.00 target price (down from $95.00) on shares of Westlake in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $122.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $105.00 to $100.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Westlake from $144.00 to $127.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Westlake from $130.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $103.54.

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.