Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Rating Lowered to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

WLK has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Westlake from $127.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Bank of America cut their price target on Westlake from $104.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen cut Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Westlake from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $117.00 target price (down from $130.00) on shares of Westlake in a research report on Friday, June 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.64.

Westlake Stock Up 1.2%

Westlake stock opened at $77.10 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $81.80 and a 200-day moving average of $94.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Westlake has a twelve month low of $56.33 and a twelve month high of $124.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a PE ratio of -6.07 and a beta of 0.62.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.67). The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.79 billion. Westlake had a negative return on equity of 1.89% and a negative net margin of 14.91%.The company’s revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.31) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Westlake will post 3.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its position in shares of Westlake by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 4,386,635 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $324,348,000 after acquiring an additional 472,224 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Westlake by 7,239.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,220,717 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $312,080,000 after purchasing an additional 4,163,207 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Westlake by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,917,329 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $289,647,000 after purchasing an additional 477,698 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in shares of Westlake during the 4th quarter worth approximately $160,548,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Westlake by 45.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,885,678 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $139,431,000 after purchasing an additional 585,438 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

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.