Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.98 EPS

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) released its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.98), Zacks reports. Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%.

Westlake Stock Performance

Shares of WLK opened at $109.68 on Monday. Westlake has a 12-month low of $108.56 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a PE ratio of 154.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $114.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $129.38.

Westlake Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. Westlake’s payout ratio is 295.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on WLK shares. StockNews.com upgraded Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Westlake in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $168.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Westlake from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $152.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, UBS Group raised Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Westlake news, Director David Tsung-Hung Chao sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.08, for a total transaction of $225,890.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,784 shares in the company, valued at $1,004,758.72. This trade represents a 18.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 74.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.