Millennium Management LLC Has $90.15 Million Holdings in Westlake Corp. $WLK

Key Points

• Millennium Management LLC significantly increased its position in Westlake Corp. by 366.7% during Q1, now owning 901,229 shares worth approximately $90 million.
• Westlake Corp. announced a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, marking an increase from the previous dividend of $0.47, which translates to an annual yield of 2.4%.
• Several analysts have updated their price targets on Westlake, with a consensus target of $92.29, highlighting a mix of upgrades and downgrades across different institutions.

Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Westlake Corp. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 366.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 901,229 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 708,142 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned 0.70% of Westlake worth $90,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 305,663 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $35,044,000 after purchasing an additional 34,481 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 107,396 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $12,312,000 after purchasing an additional 3,588 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 53.0% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 75,115 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $8,612,000 after purchasing an additional 26,030 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 71.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 50,196 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $5,755,000 after purchasing an additional 20,854 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 4.7% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company's stock.

Westlake Stock Down 1.0%

WLK traded down $0.87 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $85.14. The company had a trading volume of 751,685 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,035,850. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.75. Westlake Corp. has a 12 month low of $68.55 and a 12 month high of $151.56. The business's fifty day moving average price is $83.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $86.95. The company has a market cap of $10.92 billion, a P/E ratio of -160.64 and a beta of 0.92.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Westlake Corp. will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from Westlake's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 19th. Westlake's payout ratio is currently -400.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WLK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Mizuho upped 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. Truist Financial cut their price target on Westlake from $117.00 to $92.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Westlake from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Westlake from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Westlake from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.