Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Price Target Lowered to $130.00 at Morgan Stanley

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its price objective dropped by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $130.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective points to a potential upside of 16.40% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on WLK. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Westlake from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays upgraded Westlake from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $162.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Westlake from $170.00 to $167.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Westlake from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Westlake presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $154.85.

Westlake Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of Westlake stock traded up $1.64 during trading on Monday, hitting $111.68. 240,559 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 549,106. The stock has a market cap of $14.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 157.30, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.79. Westlake has a twelve month low of $108.95 and a twelve month high of $162.64. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $122.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $135.60.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by ($0.80). Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The company had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Westlake will post 6.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Westlake

In related news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.08, for a total value of $225,890.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,784 shares in the company, valued at $1,004,758.72. This trade represents a 18.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 74.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Westlake by 43.2% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Westlake by 8,400.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 340 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Westlake by 72.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Westlake by 84.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 531 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Westlake in the third quarter valued at about $62,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

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.