GAMMA Investing LLC Purchases Shares of 269 Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 269 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 64,811 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $9,071,000 after acquiring an additional 10,687 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in Westlake by 79.2% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 12,900 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after purchasing an additional 5,700 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,492,000. Aviva PLC increased its stake in shares of Westlake by 66.8% in the third quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 119,377 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $14,883,000 after buying an additional 47,799 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,260 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $455,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Up 1.8 %

Westlake stock opened at $152.25 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Westlake Co. has a 12 month low of $103.28 and a 12 month high of $162.64. The firm has a market cap of $19.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.51, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $138.18.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.25. Westlake had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 7.69%. The firm had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.05 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Westlake Co. will post 6.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Westlake’s payout ratio is currently 100.50%.

Insider Activity at Westlake

In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,854 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.57, for a total value of $667,764.78. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,110 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,893,632.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,854 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.57, for a total transaction of $667,764.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 50,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,893,632.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares in the company, valued at $3,055,308. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,658 shares of company stock worth $1,923,225. 74.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on WLK. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Westlake from $140.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays increased their target price on Westlake from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.79.

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.