<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Squarepoint Ops LLC lowered its position in shares of  Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK - Free Report) by 59.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission. The firm owned 94,483 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 137,575 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Westlake worth $7,174,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.</p><ul><li>Oil Jumps, 2 Plastic Stocks About To Become Value Plays</li></ul><p>Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in  Westlake during the 2nd quarter worth $595,000.  JCP Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of  Westlake during the second quarter valued at about $4,024,000.  Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in shares of  Westlake by 125.1% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,492 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $189,000 after acquiring an additional 1,385 shares during the last quarter.  Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of  Westlake by 53.4% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 17,926 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,361,000 after acquiring an additional 6,242 shares in the last quarter.  Finally, Northeast Financial Consultants Inc purchased a new position in  Westlake in the second quarter valued at about $1,883,000. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. </p><h2>Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades</h2><p>WLK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings  restated a &#34;sell (d)&#34; rating on shares of Westlake in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Mizuho  set a $90.00 price target on shares of Westlake and gave the stock an &#34;outperform&#34; rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Bank of America upgraded shares of Westlake from a &#34;neutral&#34; rating to a &#34;buy&#34; rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $87.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Westlake from $87.00 to $79.00 and set an &#34;outperform&#34; rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Westlake from $88.00 to $75.00 and set a &#34;buy&#34; rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. One research analyst  has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued  a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one  has issued  a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Westlake currently has an average rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and an average price target of $86.67.</p><p><b>Read Our Latest Report on WLK</b></p><h2>Westlake Stock Down 0.8%</h2><p>Shares of NYSE:WLK opened at $74.30 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average is $69.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.05. 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 Corporation has a 1-year low of $56.33 and a 1-year high of $120.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.01 and a beta of 0.94. </p><p>Westlake (NYSE:WLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.29) earnings per share 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. Westlake's quarterly revenue was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis.  Equities analysts anticipate that  Westlake Corporation will post 6.48 EPS for the current year. </p><h2>Westlake Announces Dividend</h2><p>The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 25th. Westlake's dividend payout ratio  is presently -28.57%. </p><h2>Westlake Company Profile</h2> (Free Report)<p>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.</p><h2>See Also</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Westlake</li><li>How to Short a Stock in 5 Easy Steps </li><li>Disney's $1 Billion Deal Brings Its Magic to OpenAI</li><li>What Does a Stock Split Mean? </li><li>Why Amazon Could Be a $300 Stock Within Weeks</li><li>Using the MarketBeat Dividend Yield Calculator</li><li>Adobe Gets Post-Earnings Lift: Long-Term Outlook Favors Upside</li></ul><p><strong>Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WLK?</strong> Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK - Free Report).</p><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPVdMSw?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPVdMSw"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Westlake Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Westlake, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Westlake wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Westlake currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

<p>Squarepoint Ops LLC reduced its stake in Westlake Corporation by 59.3% in Q2, owning 94,483 shares worth $7.17M. Other investors adjusted their positions, with some increasing holdings. Analysts have mixed ratings, with a moderate buy consensus and an average price target of $86.67. Westlake's Q3 earnings missed estimates, reporting a loss of $0.29 per share. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, with a yield of 2.9%.</p>

Westlake Corporation $WLK Shares Sold by Squarepoint Ops LLC