Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt Sells 15,350 Shares of Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK)

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lessened its holdings in Westlake Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 51.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,650 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 15,350 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt’s holdings in Westlake were worth $2,050,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in Westlake during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Gyon Technologies Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Westlake by 51.3% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Westlake from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Vertical Research downgraded shares of Westlake from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $154.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Westlake from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $138.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. raised shares of Westlake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $141.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In related news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,055,308. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Robert F. Buesinger sold 3,878 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.50, for a total value of $560,371.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,055,308. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 4,804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.02, for a total transaction of $677,460.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,306 shares in the company, valued at $6,389,052.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,658 shares of company stock valued at $1,923,225 in the last quarter. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Westlake Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of Westlake stock opened at $149.69 on Thursday. Westlake Co. has a 52-week low of $103.28 and a 52-week high of $162.64. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $146.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.37.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by ($0.09). Westlake had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.70%. The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.79 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Westlake Co. will post 6.93 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Westlake’s payout ratio is presently 54.05%.

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.