abrdn plc Acquires 5,628 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

abrdn plc boosted its holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 100.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,628 shares during the period. abrdn plc’s holdings in Westlake were worth $1,571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WLK. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Westlake during the 4th quarter valued at $5,653,000. Peterson Wealth Services purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 4th quarter worth about $212,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 2,424 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 4th quarter worth approximately $376,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of Westlake by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 89,310 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $12,500,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In related news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were 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 owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at $3,055,308. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total transaction of $677,460.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,389,052.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,055,308. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,658 shares of company stock valued at $1,923,225 in the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Westlake Trading Up 0.9 %

Westlake stock opened at $150.95 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Westlake Co. has a 12-month low of $103.28 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $147.42 and a 200 day moving average of $137.54.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.85 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.70%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.79 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. Westlake’s payout ratio is 54.05%.

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.