Wellington Management Group LLP Cuts Stock Holdings in Westlake Corporation $WLK

Wellington Management Group LLP lowered its position in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) by 92.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 141,816 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,651,701 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 0.11% of Westlake worth $10,353,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Westlake by 90.0% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 38,687 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,869,000 after purchasing an additional 18,321 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Westlake by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 19,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,881,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in Westlake during the 1st quarter worth $211,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in Westlake by 43.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,350 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Westlake by 18.2% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 3,788 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $288,000 after buying an additional 582 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Price Performance

Shares of WLK stock opened at $74.71 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 1.70. The company has a market capitalization of $9.55 billion, a PE ratio of -7.80 and a beta of 0.63. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $75.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.72. Westlake Corporation has a 12 month low of $56.33 and a 12 month high of $124.23.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. Westlake had a negative net margin of 10.94% and a positive return on equity of 0.93%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($1.11) EPS. Analysts predict that Westlake Corporation will post 3.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.533 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $2.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. This is a boost from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -22.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Westlake from $106.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $127.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 20th. Zacks Research upgraded Westlake from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price target on Westlake in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.92.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.28, for a total value of $3,120,724.44. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 642,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,610,406.40. The trade was a 5.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Profile

Westlake Corp. is a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, polymers and building products, serving customers across industrial and residential markets. The company’s core operations encompass the production of vinyls—primarily polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and its key feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)—as well as chlor-alkali products including caustic soda and chlorine. In addition, Westlake produces ethylene, propylene and specialty elastomers, along with construction-related materials such as vinyl siding, trim, windows and roofing systems.

Operating a network of vertically integrated plants and distribution centers, Westlake serves markets in North America, Europe and Asia.