Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold Rating

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Westlake from “sell” to “hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “hold,” with a consensus price target of $93.92.
• Westlake shares opened at $77.58, near their 52-week low, after recent price-target reductions from Wells Fargo and Mizuho; Royal Bank of Canada instead raised its target to $95 and maintained an “outperform” rating.
• The specialty chemicals company beat quarterly expectations, reporting $2.01 in EPS versus the $1.83 consensus and $3.27 billion in revenue, up 10.8% year over year.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on WLK. Zacks Research lowered shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 target price (up from $89.00) on shares of Westlake in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Westlake in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Westlake from $110.00 to $89.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on Westlake from $110.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Westlake currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $93.92.

Westlake Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $77.58 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 1.56. Westlake has a 1 year low of $56.33 and a 1 year high of $124.23. The firm's 50-day moving average is $78.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.86. The stock has a market cap of $9.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.10 and a beta of 0.63.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.18. Westlake had a negative net margin of 10.94% and a positive return on equity of 0.93%. The business had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($1.11) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Westlake will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WLK. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at $14,062,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Westlake by 53.6% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 50,715 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,750,000 after purchasing an additional 17,689 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 204,226 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $15,100,000 after buying an additional 15,217 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the 4th quarter valued at about $798,000. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 648,012 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $47,914,000 after buying an additional 87,532 shares during the period. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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