Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Price Target Cut to $160.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) had its price objective decreased by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $180.00 to $160.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 17.42% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Westlake from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Westlake from $174.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Bank of America raised shares of Westlake from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $151.00 to $159.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group lowered their target price 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. Finally, Mizuho started coverage on shares of Westlake in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.92.

Westlake Price Performance

WLK stock opened at $136.26 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Westlake has a 12-month low of $118.64 and a 12-month high of $162.64. The company has a market cap of $17.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 191.92, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.19. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $140.53 and a 200-day moving average of $146.23.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.21 by ($0.80). Westlake had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.81%. The company had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Westlake will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Westlake

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Westlake in the 1st quarter worth $43,000. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Westlake by 8,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 340 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Westlake in the 2nd quarter worth $66,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in Westlake in the 3rd quarter worth $75,000. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 28.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Westlake Company 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.