Westlake (NYSE:WLK) Chairman Albert Chao Sells 38,873 Shares

12 Aug 2026, 05:23 by Jessica Moore · The Cerbat Gem

Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK – Get Free Report) Chairman Albert Chao sold 38,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.28, for a total transaction of $3,120,724.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 642,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,610,406.40. The trade was a 5.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Westlake Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of WLK stock opened at $80.78 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.43 and a beta of 0.63. Westlake Corporation has a one year low of $56.33 and a one year high of $124.23. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $78.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 1.70.

Westlake (NYSE:WLK – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.18. Westlake had a negative net margin of 10.94% and a positive return on equity of 0.93%. The company had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($1.11) EPS. Westlake’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Westlake Corporation will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Westlake’s dividend payout ratio is -22.13%.

Institutional Trading of Westlake

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Westlake during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Westlake in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in Westlake by 71.3% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 562 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in Westlake during the third quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Westlake by 49.6% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 745 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Westlake from $127.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Zacks Research downgraded Westlake from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Westlake from $104.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Westlake in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of Westlake in a report on Monday, July 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $93.92.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Westlake

Westlake Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.