Westover Capital Advisors LLC Sells 104 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Westover Capital Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,326 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 104 shares during the quarter. Westover Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Westlake were worth $466,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Westlake during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Westlake by 51.3% during 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 last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in Westlake during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 55.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 354 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 19.3% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 599 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of WLK stock traded down $0.26 on Thursday, hitting $148.92. 205,830 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 396,238. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.30. Westlake Co. has a fifty-two week low of $103.28 and a fifty-two week high of $162.64. The business has a 50-day moving average of $147.98 and a 200 day moving average of $137.81.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.25. Westlake had a return on equity of 9.70% and a net margin of 3.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.05 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Westlake Co. will post 6.73 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. Westlake’s payout ratio is currently 54.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total value of $677,460.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,389,052.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total transaction of $677,460.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,389,052.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at $3,055,308. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,658 shares of company stock valued at $1,923,225 in the last three months. 74.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on WLK shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Westlake from $140.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Bank of America upgraded Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Vertical Research cut shares of Westlake from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $154.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, April 8th. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.79.

Westlake Company 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.