Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Stock Price Up 5.8%

Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)’s stock price traded up 5.8% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $143.78 and last traded at $141.24. 24,643 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 426,342 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.50.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Westlake from $172.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Vertical Research downgraded shares of Westlake from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $154.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Westlake from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $158.00 price target on shares of Westlake in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.55.

Westlake Trading Up 9.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $18.76 billion, a PE ratio of 72.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $148.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $147.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.50%.

Institutional Trading of Westlake

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Westlake by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 38,050 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,326,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Westlake by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,528 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,473,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,492,000. Clarius Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Westlake during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,260,000. Hedge funds and other 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.