Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $94.24 and last traded at $95.59, with a volume of 655277 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $102.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on WLK shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Westlake from $160.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Westlake from $134.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Westlake from $157.00 to $132.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Westlake from $166.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $136.50.

Westlake Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.79. The stock has a market cap of $11.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 124.71, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $108.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.71.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.98). Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. Westlake’s payout ratio is currently 45.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Westlake during the third quarter worth about $84,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,580,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 84.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 201,405 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $30,269,000 after buying an additional 91,973 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Westlake by 118.9% in the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 155,703 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $23,401,000 after buying an additional 84,563 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Westlake by 129.7% during the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 13,851 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,082,000 after buying an additional 7,820 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.