ExodusPoint Capital Management LP Purchases 155,618 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

ExodusPoint Capital Management LP grew its position in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 82.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 344,790 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 155,618 shares during the period. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP’s holdings in Westlake were worth $39,530,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Westlake by 247.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Westlake by 43.2% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of Westlake by 6,316.7% during 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 holdings 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 valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE:WLK opened at $101.96 on Thursday. Westlake Co. has a twelve month low of $97.37 and a twelve month high of $162.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 143.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.18. 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’s 50 day moving average price is $109.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $122.27.

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

Westlake Dividend Announcement

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 dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. Westlake’s payout ratio is currently 45.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on WLK. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $166.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Piper Sandler cut Westlake from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $120.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Westlake from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $135.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Westlake from $175.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Westlake currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.21.

Westlake 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.