Westlake Corporation $WLK Position Increased by Wedge Capital Management L L P NC

Key Points

• Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its stake in Westlake Corporation by 39.9%, owning $10.05 million in shares as of the latest SEC filing, totaling 132,401 shares.
• Westlake Corporation posted a loss of $0.09 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations, and reported a 7.9% decline in revenue year over year.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend from $0.47 to $0.53 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.6%.

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its stake in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 39.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 132,401 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 37,763 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned about 0.10% of Westlake worth $10,053,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WLK. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Westlake by 251.1% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Westlake by 127.1% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 427 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Westlake by 107.0% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 565 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in Westlake by 71.9% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 514 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Westlake by 33.9% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 525 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. upgraded Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Westlake from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Westlake from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Westlake from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.29.

Westlake Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of Westlake stock traded down $1.70 on Monday, hitting $81.37. 1,575,852 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,039,404. 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 $151.56. The firm's 50-day moving average is $84.25 and its 200 day moving average is $85.44. The stock has a market cap of $10.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -153.53 and a beta of 0.92.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 negative net margin of 0.57% and a positive return on equity of 1.26%. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.40 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Westlake Corporation will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was 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%.

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.