Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Given New $90.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has lowered Westlake's price target from $98.00 to $90.00, maintaining an "equal weight" rating, indicating a potential upside of 10.37% from the current stock price.
• The average price target for Westlake among analysts is $92.93, with one sell rating, six hold ratings, and eight buy ratings assigned to the company's stock.
• Westlake's stock traded down $1.54 to $81.55 on Wednesday, with a 52-week range of $68.55 to $153.34, and a market capitalization of $10.46 billion.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) had its target price cut by Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $90.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on WLK. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Westlake from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Westlake from $101.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup raised 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Westlake from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.93.

Westlake Stock Down 3.7%

WLK stock traded down $3.01 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $79.06. 1,230,702 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,277,256. Westlake has a 1 year low of $68.55 and a 1 year high of $153.34. The firm's 50 day moving average is $79.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.09. The stock has a market cap of $10.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -149.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 81.25 and a beta of 0.92. 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 (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.09) EPS 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 firm had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Westlake will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a boost from Westlake's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Westlake's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -396.23%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westlake

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Westlake by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 557,943 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $63,832,000 after acquiring an additional 5,297 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Westlake by 251.1% during the first 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. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Westlake by 71.9% during the first 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. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Westlake by 4.6% during the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 12,253 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,226,000 after buying an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of Westlake by 2.7% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 61,134 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $6,115,000 after buying an additional 1,635 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company's stock.

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.