Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Given New $122.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its price objective reduced by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $122.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective points to a potential upside of 8.21% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on WLK. Bank of America reduced their target price on Westlake from $134.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Westlake from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group raised Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup raised Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $152.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Westlake from $168.00 to $166.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.29.

Westlake Stock Performance

NYSE WLK traded up $0.66 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $112.75. The company had a trading volume of 94,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 593,354. The company has a market cap of $14.51 billion, a PE ratio of 158.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.17. Westlake has a 1-year low of $104.74 and a 1-year high of $162.64. The business has a 50 day moving average of $113.98 and a 200-day moving average of $128.88. 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) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Westlake will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Westlake

In other Westlake news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.08, for a total value of $225,890.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,004,758.72. The trade was a 18.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 74.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WLK. Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in Westlake by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 2,393 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $274,000 after buying an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its position in shares of Westlake by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 5,190 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $595,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Westlake by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 346,789 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $39,759,000 after purchasing an additional 28,505 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Westlake by 3,182.3% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 219,030 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $25,112,000 after purchasing an additional 212,357 shares during the period. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Westlake by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 1,874 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

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.