Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Sets New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) shares hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $104.12 and last traded at $103.00, with a volume of 55094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $105.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WLK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Westlake from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $135.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group raised shares of Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Westlake from $130.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Westlake from $168.00 to $166.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Citigroup raised Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $152.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.07.

Westlake Trading Down 3.1 %

The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.15 billion, a PE ratio of 143.92, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $112.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $125.00.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. Westlake’s payout ratio is 45.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WLK. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the third quarter worth about $420,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Westlake by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,624 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $394,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Westlake by 4.1% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,911 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 4.1% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,021 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,506,000 after buying an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Westlake by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 7,855 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,181,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.