Westlake (NYSE:WLK) rating increased to hold at StockNews.com

Westlake (NYSE:WLK – Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Westlake from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Westlake from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Westlake from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Westlake from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Westlake from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Westlake presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $166.83.

Get the latest analysis on Westlake

Westlake trading up 4.5%

Shares of WLK stock opened at $151.09 on Thursday. Westlake has a 12-month low of $112.77 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $145.32 and a two hundred day moving average price of $148.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.61, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap of $19.43 billion, a PE ratio of 75.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.20.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK – Get Your Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.41. Westlake had a return on equity of 7.84% and a net margin of 2.27%. The business had revenue of $3.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.22 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted EPS of $2.31. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Westlake will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge funds affect Westlake

Large investors have recently modified their holdings in the business. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd grew its position in Westlake by 2.6% in the first quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 3,302 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $504,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. raised its stake in Westlake by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 4,256 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $596,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Westlake by 1.7% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,554 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $849,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Westlake by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 2,724 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $394,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in Westlake by 0.3% in the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 40,228 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,147,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s shares.

About Westlake

(Get a free report)

Westlake Corporation is engaged in the manufacturing and marketing of performance and essential materials, 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 Materials and Essential Materials and Housing and Infrastructure Products.

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