Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Upgraded at Bank of America

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Bank of America from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $159.00 price target on the specialty chemicals company's stock, up from their prior price target of $151.00. Bank of America's price objective suggests a potential upside of 11.85% from the company's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on WLK. Barclays upgraded shares of 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 report on Monday, September 30th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Westlake from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Westlake from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Westlake from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Westlake from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $165.92.

Westlake Stock Performance

NYSE WLK traded up $0.35 on Wednesday, reaching $142.15. 427,689 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 434,894. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.28 billion, a PE ratio of 68.33, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.17. Westlake has a one year low of $112.77 and a one year high of $162.64. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $144.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $148.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 7.84%. The company had revenue of $3.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. Westlake's quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Westlake will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Westlake

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new position in Westlake during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,273,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in Westlake in the first quarter worth approximately $3,254,000. Comerica Bank lifted its holdings in Westlake by 17.9% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 24,490 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,742,000 after buying an additional 3,710 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in Westlake during the 2nd quarter valued at $544,000. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Westlake in the 1st quarter valued at $207,000. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Westlake

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.