Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Raises Holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 5,166 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Westlake were worth $748,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 106.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,311,836 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $183,605,000 after purchasing an additional 675,725 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Westlake in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $50,961,000. Appian Way Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Westlake during the 1st quarter valued at $25,154,000. Natixis lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 41,979.2% during the first quarter. Natixis now owns 85,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $12,988,000 after acquiring an additional 84,798 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 460.4% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 85,008 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $11,898,000 after acquiring an additional 69,838 shares during the period. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of WLK opened at $137.56 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $17.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 69.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.18. Westlake Co. has a 1 year low of $112.77 and a 1 year high of $162.64. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.94.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $3.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. Westlake had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 7.84%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Westlake Co. will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 20th. This is a positive change from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Westlake’s payout ratio is 105.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WLK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Westlake from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Westlake from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Westlake from $172.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Westlake from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Westlake has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $166.83.

Westlake Company 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.