AXQ Capital LP Buys New Shares in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 12,097 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $1,387,000. Westlake makes up 0.6% of AXQ Capital LP's portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WLK. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Westlake by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 98,056 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $11,242,000 after purchasing an additional 4,088 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 236,354 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $27,098,000 after acquiring an additional 11,992 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of Westlake by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 59,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $6,822,000 after acquiring an additional 12,833 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Westlake by 4.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 552,646 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $82,837,000 after acquiring an additional 23,558 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Westlake by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,313,847 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $379,933,000 after purchasing an additional 574,068 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company's stock.

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Westlake Price Performance

Shares of Westlake stock traded up $0.90 on Wednesday, reaching $101.58. The stock had a trading volume of 674,096 shares, compared to its average volume of 521,457. The business's 50 day moving average is $111.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $123.53. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Westlake Co. has a 1 year low of $99.18 and a 1 year high of $162.64. The company has a market cap of $13.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 143.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.18.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 EPS 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 issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. Westlake's payout ratio is currently 45.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup upgraded Westlake from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $152.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Westlake from $157.00 to $132.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Westlake from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Westlake from $147.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Westlake from $134.00 to $116.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $139.00.

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.