Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Takes Position in Westlake Corporation $WLK

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank bought a new stake of 13,367 shares in Westlake (NYSE:WLK) in Q4, valued at approximately $988,000.
• Westlake's latest quarter beat EPS expectations (loss of $0.25 vs. -$1.47 consensus) but revenue fell 10.9% year-over-year to $2.53 billion, with a negative net margin and negative return on equity.
• The company has a market cap of about $14.8 billion, pays a $0.53 quarterly dividend (≈1.8% yield), and carries a consensus analyst rating of Hold with an average target price of $110.19.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank bought a new stake in Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 13,367 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $988,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 180.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 740 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Westlake by 49.6% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 745 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Westlake by 58.1% during the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 778 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company's stock.

Westlake Stock Performance

NYSE WLK opened at $115.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $14.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.86 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a 50 day moving average of $111.45 and a 200-day moving average of $88.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Westlake Corporation has a 1-year low of $56.33 and a 1-year high of $124.23.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.25) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $1.22. The company had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.61 billion. Westlake had a negative net margin of 13.50% and a negative return on equity of 1.22%. The company's revenue was down 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.06 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Westlake Corporation will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Westlake's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -18.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on WLK shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Westlake from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $120.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Westlake in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Westlake from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Westlake from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $108.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Westlake from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $110.19.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In related news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 17,409 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.92, for a total value of $1,756,916.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 44,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,484,178.36. This trade represents a 28.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

About Westlake

Westlake Corp. is a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, polymers and building products, serving customers across industrial and residential markets. The company's core operations encompass the production of vinyls—primarily polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and its key feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)—as well as chlor-alkali products including caustic soda and chlorine. In addition, Westlake produces ethylene, propylene and specialty elastomers, along with construction-related materials such as vinyl siding, trim, windows and roofing systems.

Operating a network of vertically integrated plants and distribution centers, Westlake serves markets in North America, Europe and Asia.

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