Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Given New $153.00 Price Target at Royal Bank of Canada

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its target price upped by Royal Bank of Canada from $134.00 to $153.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

WLK has been the topic of a number of other reports. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. raised Westlake from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Bank of America raised Westlake from a hold rating to a buy rating and upped their price target for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday. Barclays upped their price target on Westlake from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Citigroup upped their price target on Westlake from $140.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Westlake from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Westlake presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $145.79.

Westlake Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE WLK opened at $150.76 on Friday. Westlake has a 12 month low of $103.28 and a 12 month high of $162.64. The stock has a market cap of $19.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $146.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.29. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.85 billion. Westlake had a return on equity of 9.70% and a net margin of 3.82%. The company’s revenue was down 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.79 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Westlake will post 6.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total transaction of $560,371.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at $3,055,308. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total value of $677,460.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,389,052.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,055,308. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,658 shares of company stock worth $1,923,225. 74.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 5,681 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $795,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 51.3% in the 4th 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. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,528 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,473,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 17,569 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,190,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Westlake by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 3,302 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $504,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.