Clinton Group Inc. increased its holdings in Westlake Chemical Co. (NYSE:WLK) by 742.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,752 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,915 shares during the period. Clinton Group Inc.’s holdings in Westlake Chemical were worth $4,386,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd purchased a new stake in Westlake Chemical during the second quarter valued at about $1,475,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its position in Westlake Chemical by 194.9% during the first quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 26,255 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,918,000 after acquiring an additional 17,352 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in Westlake Chemical by 119.3% during the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 193,783 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $21,539,000 after acquiring an additional 105,418 shares during the period. Navellier & Associates Inc grew its position in Westlake Chemical by 82.4% during the first quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc now owns 13,718 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,525,000 after acquiring an additional 6,196 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in Westlake Chemical by 18.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 489,915 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $54,455,000 after acquiring an additional 75,530 shares during the period. 29.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Get Westlake Chemical alerts:Shares of Westlake Chemical traded up $0.70, hitting $109.50, on Friday, according to MarketBeat.com. The company had a trading volume of 12,544 shares, compared to its average volume of 822,103. Westlake Chemical Co. has a 12-month low of $65.41 and a 12-month high of $124.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.79 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $13.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.01, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.59.
Westlake Chemical (NYSE:WLK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.11. Westlake Chemical had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 17.61%. The company had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. research analysts expect that Westlake Chemical Co. will post 9.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 30th were paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 29th. Westlake Chemical’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.36%.
In related news, Chairman James Chao sold 33,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.69, for a total value of $4,019,580.45. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 51,492 shares in the company, valued at $6,214,569.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark Steven Bender sold 23,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.33, for a total value of $2,757,958.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 32,636 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,829,181.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 70,376 shares of company stock worth $8,437,710. Insiders own 72.00% of the company’s stock.
A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Westlake Chemical in a research report on Wednesday, June 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. ValuEngine raised Westlake Chemical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 12th. Cowen boosted their price target on Westlake Chemical from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 11th. MED reissued a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Westlake Chemical in a research report on Thursday, May 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Westlake Chemical from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Westlake Chemical presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.94.
Westlake Chemical Company Profile
Westlake Chemical Corporation manufactures and markets basic chemicals, vinyls, polymers, and building products primarily in North America and Europe. It operates through two segments, Olefins and Vinyls. The Olefins segment offers polyethylene, styrene monomers, and various ethylene co-products, as well as sells propylene, crude butadiene, pyrolysis gasoline, and hydrogen products.
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