FourThought Financial Partners LLC Invests $217,000 in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,552 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Westlake by 56.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,429 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $37,953,000 after buying an additional 109,433 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Westlake by 2.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,630,975 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $577,344,000 after purchasing an additional 96,152 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Westlake by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,142,590 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $159,917,000 after purchasing an additional 66,614 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Westlake by 10.3% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 682,832 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $85,129,000 after purchasing an additional 63,823 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake in the fourth quarter valued at $8,492,000. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Westlake Stock Performance

WLK stock traded up $0.78 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $153.03. 141,623 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 396,125. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Westlake Co. has a 52 week low of $103.28 and a 52 week high of $162.64. The business has a 50-day moving average of $148.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $138.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.68 billion, a PE ratio of 76.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.30.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.25. Westlake had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 7.69%. The business had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 6.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is 100.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft 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, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Westlake from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Vertical Research downgraded shares of Westlake from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $154.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Westlake from $134.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Westlake news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total transaction of $560,371.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,055,308. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total transaction of $560,371.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,055,308. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total transaction of $677,460.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,306 shares in the company, valued at $6,389,052.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,608 shares of company stock valued at $2,676,565. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Westlake Profile

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.