Point72 Hong Kong Ltd Sells 15,197 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Point72 Hong Kong Ltd cut its stake in shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 60.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 10,059 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 15,197 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Westlake were worth $1,512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Westlake by 8,400.0% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 340 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Westlake in the 3rd quarter worth about $62,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Westlake in the second quarter valued at about $66,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the third quarter valued at about $75,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Westlake during the second quarter worth about $101,000. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Westlake news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total value of $227,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 9,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,239,420. This trade represents a 15.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:WLK opened at $128.40 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $136.87 and its 200-day moving average is $143.54. Westlake Co. has a 1 year low of $118.64 and a 1 year high of $162.64. The company has a market capitalization of $16.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 180.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.04.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by ($0.80). Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The business had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.20 earnings per share. Westlake’s quarterly revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 6.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 295.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Westlake from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Westlake in a report on Thursday, August 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Westlake from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays raised Westlake from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $162.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Westlake from $171.00 to $165.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Westlake presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.17.

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.