Deutsche Bank AG Sells 5,353 Shares of Westlake Corp. $WLK

Key Points

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Deutsche Bank AG cut its position in Westlake Corp. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 13.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,230 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 5,353 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG's holdings in Westlake were worth $3,324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in Westlake by 251.1% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 316 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Westlake by 127.1% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 427 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Westlake by 71.9% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 514 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Westlake by 33.9% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 525 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new position in Westlake in the 4th quarter valued at $71,000. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WLK shares. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Westlake from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased 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. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Westlake from $135.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Westlake from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $92.29.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WLK traded up $7.7150 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $90.4550. 2,312,260 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,390,508. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $80.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $89.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.60 billion, a PE ratio of -170.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 398.33 and a beta of 0.92. Westlake Corp. has a 12 month low of $68.55 and a 12 month high of $153.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 2.47.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.15). The business had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. Westlake had a positive return on equity of 1.26% and a negative net margin of 0.57%.Westlake's revenue was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Westlake Corp. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. 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. Westlake's payout ratio is -400.00%.

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.