Analyzing Westlake Chemical’s Stock Performance

Westlake Chemical (WLK) stock has been good in 2017. Since the beginning of 2017, Westlake Chemical has made a return of 33.70% as of August 28, 2017. The stock has outperformed the broad-based SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY). So far, SPY has returned 9.40% in 2017. Westlake Chemical’s peers Eastman Chemical (EMN), Huntsman Chemical (HUN), and LyondellBasell (LYB) have made returns of 13.60%, 39.80%, and 5.30%, respectively, during the same period.

The stock’s strong performance caused Westlake Chemical to outperform its peers with the exception of Huntsman Chemical. Westlake Chemical’s stock performance was primarily driven by its strong earnings in 1H17 due to the continued integration of the Axiall acquisition. The trend is expected to continue in fiscal 2017. Cost-saving synergies will drive the earnings growth.

With big gains, Westlake Chemical stock has been trading 13.80% above its 100-day moving average price of $66.12, which indicates a clear upward trend in the stock. However, Westlake Chemical’s 14-day RSI (relative strength index) of 72 indicates that the stock has temporarily moved into the “overbought” position. An RSI of 30 and below indicates that the stock is oversold. A score of 70 and above indicates that the stock is overbought and might face some selling pressure, which could have a negative impact on the stock price.