Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 40,392 Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 40,392 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $5,653,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WLK. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Westlake during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Westlake during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Westlake by 51.3% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in Westlake during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Gyon Technologies Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Westlake during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Westlake from $134.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Westlake from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $145.79.

Insider Activity at Westlake

In related news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,854 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.57, for a total transaction of $667,764.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 50,110 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,893,632.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Westlake news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,854 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.57, for a total value of $667,764.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,110 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,893,632.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at $3,055,308. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,658 shares of company stock valued at $1,923,225 over the last quarter. Insiders own 74.10% of the company's stock.

Westlake Stock Up 1.2 %

WLK traded up $1.82 on Friday, reaching $150.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 484,556 shares, compared to its average volume of 415,924. The company has a market capitalization of $19.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.30. Westlake Co. has a fifty-two week low of $103.28 and a fifty-two week high of $162.64. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $146.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $136.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.81 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.70%. Westlake's revenue was down 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.79 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Westlake Co. will post 6.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. Westlake's payout ratio is currently 54.05%.

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.