Citigroup Cuts Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Price Target to $116.00

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by equities research analysts at Citigroup from $130.00 to $116.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock. Citigroup's target price would suggest a potential upside of 26.50% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Westlake from $166.00 to $155.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 28th. UBS Group raised shares of Westlake from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $144.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Westlake from $147.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Westlake from $175.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $132.69.

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Westlake Price Performance

Westlake stock traded up $8.62 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $91.70. 478,892 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 556,032. Westlake has a 1-year low of $79.94 and a 1-year high of $162.64. The firm has a market cap of $11.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 128.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.02. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $106.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.29. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. Westlake's revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Westlake will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 3rd quarter valued at about $84,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in Westlake in the third quarter worth $1,580,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Westlake by 84.0% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 201,405 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $30,269,000 after buying an additional 91,973 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Westlake by 118.9% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 155,703 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $23,401,000 after buying an additional 84,563 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 129.7% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 13,851 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,082,000 after buying an additional 7,820 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.