Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Stock Price

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Barclays from $175.00 to $135.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Barclays‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 23.19% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on WLK. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Westlake from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Westlake from $155.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Westlake in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $168.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Westlake from $170.00 to $167.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of 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. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.50.

Westlake Stock Performance

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $109.59 on Tuesday. Westlake has a 12 month low of $104.74 and a 12 month high of $162.64. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $14.10 billion, a PE ratio of 154.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $129.12.

Insider Transactions at Westlake

In other news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.08, for a total value of $225,890.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,784 shares in the company, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 74.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Westlake by 247.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 6,316.7% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 385 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Westlake by 1,668.2% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 389 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Westlake by 43.2% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Westlake by 72.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during 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.