Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Coverage Initiated at Truist Financial

Research analysts at Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $168.00 price target on the specialty chemicals company's stock. Truist Financial's target price indicates a potential upside of 46.93% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Westlake from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Westlake from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $151.00 to $159.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Westlake from $171.00 to $165.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Barclays upgraded shares of Westlake from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $162.00 to $180.00 in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $155.79.

Westlake Price Performance

WLK traded down $1.50 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $114.34. 429,856 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 506,032. Westlake has a 1 year low of $108.95 and a 1 year high of $162.64. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $118.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $133.12. The company has a market cap of $14.72 billion, a PE ratio of 161.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.18.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.21 by ($0.80). Westlake had a net margin of 0.81% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The business had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. Westlake's revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Westlake will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Westlake news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.08, for a total transaction of $225,890.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,004,758.72. This trade represents a 18.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 74.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WLK. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in Westlake by 1.1% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 7,855 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,181,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in Westlake by 43.2% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 318 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in Westlake by 3.8% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,624 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased 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 purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in Westlake by 4.1% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,911 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.