Schroder Investment Management Group Grows Stock Holdings in Westlake Corporation $WLK

Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 261,562 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 12,581 shares during the quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group’s holdings in Westlake were worth $20,146,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Westlake by 79.9% during the second quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 48,014 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,646,000 after purchasing an additional 21,319 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in Westlake during the second quarter worth $404,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Westlake in the second quarter valued at $104,314,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in shares of Westlake by 142.8% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 25,833 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,963,000 after buying an additional 15,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. increased its position in shares of Westlake by 61.3% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 117,151 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,028,000 after buying an additional 44,525 shares in the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Westlake Price Performance

NYSE:WLK opened at $114.32 on Friday. Westlake Corporation has a 12-month low of $56.33 and a 12-month high of $114.65. The firm has a market cap of $14.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.77 and a beta of 0.83. The company’s 50-day moving average is $92.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.20. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.25) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $1.22. The business had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.61 billion. Westlake had a negative net margin of 13.50% and a negative return on equity of 1.22%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.06 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Westlake Corporation will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 3rd. Westlake’s payout ratio is presently -18.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In other Westlake news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 17,409 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.92, for a total value of $1,756,916.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,484,178.36. The trade was a 28.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Albert Chao sold 40,836 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.57, for a total value of $3,004,304.52. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 627,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,181,507.54. This represents a 6.11% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on WLK. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Westlake in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Westlake from $82.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Westlake from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Westlake from $70.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Westlake in a research note on Monday, November 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.13.

Westlake 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.