Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Rating Lowered to Underweight at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan downgraded Westlake to Underweight from Neutral and set a $90 price target, implying roughly a 14.3% downside from the current share price.
• Westlake posted a material Q1 miss—EPS of ($0.77) vs. consensus (~($0.10)) and revenue of $2.65B vs. ~$2.79B—fueling investor concern after negative margins and weaker demand commentary.
• Analyst views are mixed: several firms have raised targets and issued Buy ratings, but the MarketBeat consensus remains an average rating of "Hold" with an average target of $114.00.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating in a report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. They presently have a $90.00 price objective on the specialty chemicals company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price points to a potential downside of 14.28% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Westlake from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Westlake from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $108.00 to $127.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Westlake from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Westlake from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $115.00 price target on shares of Westlake and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $114.00.

Westlake Price Performance

WLK opened at $105.00 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $111.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $89.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.24. Westlake has a 52 week low of $56.33 and a 52 week high of $124.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.45 billion, a PE ratio of -8.97 and a beta of 0.67.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.67). Westlake had a negative return on equity of 1.22% and a negative net margin of 13.50%.The business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.31) EPS. Westlake's revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Westlake will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 17,409 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.92, for a total transaction of $1,756,916.28. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,433 shares in the company, valued at $4,484,178.36. The trade was a 28.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 8,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $935,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Westlake by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 4,108 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Westlake by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 28,134 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,136,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its stake in Westlake by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 6,868 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $802,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Westlake by 37.4% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 805 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Westlake

Here are the key news stories impacting Westlake this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Deer Park site achieves ISCC PLUS certification, expanding the EpoVIVE™ mass-balance offering across the U.S. and Europe — supports long‑term sustainability positioning and market access in coatings, wind energy and other end markets. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Related entity Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) boosted its distribution after a strong quarter — positive for the group but the benefit to Westlake Corporation (WLK) is indirect and limited. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Material Q1 miss on both profit and revenue: Westlake reported EPS of ($0.77) vs. consensus (~($0.10)) and revenue of $2.65B vs. ~$2.79B; sales were down ~6.8% year‑over‑year and margins were negative. These results underpin the sell‑off and raise near‑term earnings risk. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction and commentary emphasize a weak outlook — major outlets report the stock plunged after the miss and cautious management commentary, signaling investor concern about demand and near‑term recovery. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst and transcript coverage highlights the magnitude of the miss versus estimates and operational metrics (Zacks coverage and the Q1 earnings call/transcript provide color on drivers, volumes and cost pressures investors will watch). Read More. Read More.

Westlake Company Profile

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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