Westlake Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:WLK)

Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Investors acquired 12,306 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 1,726% compared to the average volume of 674 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup upgraded Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $152.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Westlake from $160.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Westlake from $147.00 to $133.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays dropped their target price on Westlake from $175.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price target on Westlake from $168.00 to $166.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.07.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WLK. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Westlake by 732.7% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 993,150 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $113,865,000 after acquiring an additional 873,888 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Westlake by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,313,847 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $379,933,000 after acquiring an additional 574,068 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in Westlake by 699.1% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 595,149 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $89,445,000 after acquiring an additional 520,669 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Westlake in the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,630,000. Finally, Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the third quarter worth $55,542,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Price Performance

NYSE WLK traded down $1.00 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $100.96. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 302,871 shares, compared to its average volume of 504,024. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 142.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.18. Westlake has a 1-year low of $99.46 and a 1-year high of $162.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.04. The company’s 50-day moving average is $112.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.84.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.98). The business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.72 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Westlake will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Westlake’s payout ratio is 45.36%.

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.