Tudor Pickering Upgrades Westlake (NYSE:WLK) to Strong-Buy

Key Points

• Westlake has been upgraded from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating by Tudor Pickering, indicating increased confidence in the stock's performance.
• Recent analyses show a mix of perceptions: while Tudor Pickering predicts strong potential, firms like JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs have lowered their price targets, suggesting caution in investment.
• Westlake's current price is around $81.34, with a significant fluctuation noted from a 52-week high of $153.34 to a low of $68.55, showcasing its volatility in the market.

Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $110.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Westlake from $101.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Westlake from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $98.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $117.00 to $92.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $92.93.

Westlake Stock Down 3.7%

Shares of WLK traded down $3.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $79.06. The stock had a trading volume of 1,230,702 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,246,577. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.86. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $79.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $91.47. The company has a market cap of $10.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -149.17, a PEG ratio of 51.04 and a beta of 0.92. Westlake has a 1-year low of $68.55 and a 1-year high of $153.34.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.15). The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3 billion. Westlake had a negative net margin of 0.57% and a positive return on equity of 1.26%. The company's revenue was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Westlake will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WLK. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Westlake by 17.7% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,900,025 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $390,120,000 after buying an additional 586,178 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Westlake by 10.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,041,190 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $104,150,000 after acquiring an additional 102,268 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Westlake by 732.7% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 993,150 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $113,865,000 after acquiring an additional 873,888 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Westlake by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 983,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $112,711,000 after purchasing an additional 58,093 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Westlake by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 934,122 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $107,092,000 after purchasing an additional 43,544 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.