State of Alaska Department of Revenue Sells 24,029 Shares of Westlake Corporation $WLK

State of Alaska Department of Revenue cut its position in shares of Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) by 86.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,649 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 24,029 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Westlake were worth $281,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Huntington National Bank bought a new stake in Westlake in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of Westlake by 54.5% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 567 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake by 107.0% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 565 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 49.9% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 640 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in shares of Westlake by 989.6% in the 2nd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 730 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 663 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE WLK opened at $86.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $11.12 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 39.85 and a beta of 0.91. Westlake Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $56.33 and a fifty-two week high of $119.86. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $77.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.99.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.29) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.47). Westlake had a negative net margin of 8.34% and a negative return on equity of 0.78%. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. Westlake’s revenue was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Westlake Corporation will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th were given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 25th. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -28.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Westlake in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley set a $80.00 target price on Westlake in a report on Monday, December 15th. Bank of America raised Westlake from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $87.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Westlake from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake

In related news, Chairman Albert Chao sold 40,836 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.57, for a total transaction of $3,004,304.52. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 627,722 shares in the company, valued at $46,181,507.54. The trade was a 6.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

About Westlake

Westlake Corp. is a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, polymers and building products, serving customers across industrial and residential markets. The company’s core operations encompass the production of vinyls—primarily polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and its key feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)—as well as chlor-alkali products including caustic soda and chlorine. In addition, Westlake produces ethylene, propylene and specialty elastomers, along with construction-related materials such as vinyl siding, trim, windows and roofing systems.

Operating a network of vertically integrated plants and distribution centers, Westlake serves markets in North America, Europe and Asia.