Q3 2024 Earnings Estimate for Westlake Co. Issued By KeyCorp (NYSE:WLK)

Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) – Stock analysts at KeyCorp issued their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Westlake in a report issued on Sunday, October 6th. KeyCorp analyst A. Yefremov anticipates that the specialty chemicals company will post earnings of $1.85 per share for the quarter. The consensus estimate for Westlake’s current full-year earnings is $7.13 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for Westlake’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.86 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.06 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $6.69 EPS.

WLK has been the topic of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Westlake from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Mizuho began coverage on Westlake in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Westlake from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com lowered Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Westlake from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $162.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Westlake presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $167.50.

Westlake Trading Down 0.3 %

Westlake stock opened at $143.64 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.61. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $143.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $148.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.47 billion, a PE ratio of 72.18, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.17. Westlake has a 52 week low of $112.77 and a 52 week high of $162.64.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $3.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. Westlake had a return on equity of 7.84% and a net margin of 2.27%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share.

Westlake Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. This is an increase from Westlake’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. Westlake’s payout ratio is presently 105.53%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westlake

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 1st quarter valued at $43,000. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Westlake by 8,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 340 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 2nd quarter valued at $66,000. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its position in shares of Westlake by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 500 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Westlake in the 2nd quarter valued at $101,000. 28.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.