From Ford Equity Research Report: “Westlake Chemical Corp. (WLK) is a manufacturer and marketer of basic chemicals, vinyls, polymers and fabricated polyvinyl chloride (PVC) building products. ... Earnings strength is positive. Ford’s earnings momentum measures the acceleration or deceleration in trailing 12 month operating earnings per share growth. ...
“While Westlake Chemical’s earnings have increased from $1.10 to an estimated $4.00 over the past five quarters, they have shown acceleration in quarterly growth rates when adjusted for the volatility of earnings [see chart]. This indicates an improvement in future earnings growth may occur. ... Relative valuation is positive. Westlake’s operating earnings yield of 7.1% ranks above 79% of the other companies in the Ford universe of stocks, indicating that it is undervalued. ... Price movement is positive. Westlake’s stock price is up 113.3% in the last 12 months, up 30.1% in the past quarter and up 21.0% in the past month. This historical performance should lead to above-average price performance in the next one to three months.”
Richard Segarra, CFA, Ford Equity Research Report, 4/1/11
