Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) reported second-quarter 2026 results that exceeded Wall Street forecasts, supported by stronger profitability in its Performance and Essential Materials business.
The better-than-expected performance lifted the company’s shares 2.78% in pre-market trading.
Revenue and Earnings Top Estimates
Westlake posted adjusted earnings of $2.01 per share, ahead of the analyst consensus estimate of $1.86.
Revenue reached $3.27 billion, slightly above market expectations of $3.25 billion and representing an 11% increase from $2.95 billion in the second quarter of 2025.
The results reflected higher sales volumes and improved pricing across several product categories.
Performance and Essential Materials Drives Growth
The company’s Performance and Essential Materials (PEM) segment delivered a sharp turnaround during the quarter.
Operating income improved to $185 million, compared with an operating loss of $188 million a year earlier.
Westlake attributed the improvement to a 14% increase in average selling prices, along with the continued benefits of its three-pillar profitability improvement programme.
Housing Business Delivers Stable Results
The Housing and Infrastructure Products segment generated operating income of $212 million, compared with $222 million in the prior-year period.
Higher sales volumes were largely offset by lower average selling prices, resulting in a modest year-over-year decline in segment earnings.
CEO Highlights Operational Improvements
President and Chief Executive Officer Jean-Marc Gilson said the company’s performance reflected stronger market conditions as well as internal efficiency initiatives.
“The significant improvement in PEM’s second quarter earnings underscores its substantial leverage to improving global supply-demand fundamentals, driven in part by logistical disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as the meaningful actions that we took last year to improve PEM earnings through footprint optimization, cost reduction, and reliability improvement,” said Jean-Marc Gilson, President and Chief Executive Officer.
EBITDA Doubles as Cash Flow Strengthens
Second-quarter EBITDA increased to $679 million, doubling from $340 million in the same period last year.
EBITDA margin expanded to 21%, compared with 12% a year earlier.
Westlake also generated $318 million in operating cash flow during the quarter, reduced outstanding debt by $500 million and returned $99 million to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.
Sales Volumes Continue to Increase
Overall sales volume rose 7% year over year.
Volume in the Performance and Essential Materials segment increased 7%, while Housing and Infrastructure Products volume also grew 6%, excluding the impact of acquisitions and temporary plant shutdowns.
Westlake Corporation stock price
