Fmr LLC Sells 1,291,403 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

FMR LLC lessened its stake in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 47.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,438,603 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 1,291,403 shares during the quarter. FMR LLC owned about 1.12% of Westlake worth $164,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WLK. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Westlake by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,988 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $572,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Westlake by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 29,396 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,292,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in Westlake by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,204 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,285,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Westlake by 247.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System increased its position in Westlake by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 8,900 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,020,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Westlake from $144.00 to $127.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Westlake from $147.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Westlake from $130.00 to $116.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Westlake from $130.00 to $122.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $126.23.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of WLK stock traded up $1.54 on Thursday, reaching $91.86. The company had a trading volume of 603,190 shares, compared to its average volume of 564,487. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.80 billion, a PE ratio of 129.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.02. 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 business's 50-day moving average is $103.42 and its 200 day moving average is $117.91. Westlake Co. has a one year low of $81.41 and a one year high of $161.31.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.98). The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during 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%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Westlake's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.36%.

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.