Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Acquires 445 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 89,310 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 445 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Westlake worth $12,500,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WLK. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 51.3% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in Westlake by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,528 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,473,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 17,569 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,190,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 19.3% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 599 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Westlake by 55.9% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 354 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Trading Down 0.7 %

WLK opened at $149.68 on Tuesday. Westlake Co. has a twelve month low of $103.28 and a twelve month high of $162.64. The firm has a market cap of $19.19 billion, a PE ratio of 40.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.37. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $146.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $136.65.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.81 by ($0.09). Westlake had a return on equity of 9.70% and a net margin of 3.82%. The business had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.79 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Westlake Co. will post 6.93 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.05%.

Insider Activity at Westlake

In other Westlake news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of Westlake stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total value of $677,460.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,389,052.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total transaction of $560,371.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at $3,055,308. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total value of $677,460.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,389,052.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 13,658 shares of company stock worth $1,923,225. 74.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on WLK. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. raised Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Westlake from $140.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Vertical Research downgraded shares of Westlake from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $154.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.79.

Westlake Profile

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.