QRG Capital Management Inc. Sells 2,371 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

QRG Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 18.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,268 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 2,371 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Westlake were worth $1,177,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,198,710 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $180,154,000 after purchasing an additional 9,838 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in Westlake by 699.1% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 595,149 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $89,445,000 after buying an additional 520,669 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Westlake by 4.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 552,646 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $82,837,000 after buying an additional 23,558 shares in the last quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP bought a new position in Westlake during the third quarter valued at approximately $55,542,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 35.1% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 318,284 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $47,835,000 after acquiring an additional 82,617 shares in the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Westlake Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:WLK traded up $1.28 during trading on Friday, reaching $112.03. 717,477 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 493,104. Westlake Co. has a 52-week low of $104.74 and a 52-week high of $162.64. The stock has a market cap of $14.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 157.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $113.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.79.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last posted its 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). The business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.72 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Westlake Co. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Westlake's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Westlake from $130.00 to $122.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays lowered their price target on Westlake from $175.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Westlake from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Westlake from $147.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Westlake from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $135.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $140.07.

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.