CE vs WLKP vs WLK Stock Comparison

Celanese, Westlake Chemical Partners and Westlake Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CE Celanese Corp
$48.10 +2.2% 1M +14.0% 1Y
Market cap
$5.35B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$9.71B
Div. yield
0.00%
Commodity Chemicals Basic Materials
2 wins
WLK Westlake Corp
$65.31 -3.6% 1M -17.6% 1Y
Market cap
$8.50B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$11.29B
Div. yield
0.03%
Commodity Chemicals Basic Materials
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Westlake Chemical Partners leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Westlake Chemical Partners 7, Westlake 2, Celanese 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCEWLKPWLKLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $5.35B $740.87M $8.50B WLK
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -4.6x 12.9x -6.9x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 7.6x 14.4x 38.4x CE
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -2.2% +12.1% -4.0% WLKP
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -12.0% 4.7% -10.9% WLKP
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -4.1% 30.1% -8.0% WLKP
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 63.7x 0.7x -42.9x WLK
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.09% 0.03% WLKP
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +14.0% +6.3% -17.6% CE
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -21.7%/yr -4.0%/yr -7.4%/yr WLKP
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 51.7% 18.5% 43.5% WLKP
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 29/100 85/100 41/100 WLKP

Percentile Scorecard

CEWLKPWLK

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCEWLKPWLK
Valuation 58 #40 of 94 99 #2 of 94 46 #51 of 94
Growth 23 #71 of 92 56 #41 of 92 1 #91 of 92
Profitability 32 #61 of 89 100 #1 of 89 23 #69 of 89
Financial Health 13 #85 of 97 84 #16 of 97 53 #46 of 97
Shareholder Returns 22 #55 of 70 87 #10 of 70 84 #12 of 70
Overall 29 85 41
  • CE ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • WLKP ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • WLK ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCEWLKPWLKSPY
1 month +2.2%-1.9%-3.6% -0.8%
3 months +8.4%-2.9%-9.7% +3.5%
6 months -26.1%-6.3%-41.3% +7.0%
Year to date +13.8%+11.2%-11.7% +12.2%
1 year +14.0%+6.3%-17.6% +13.0%
3 years -57.6%-0.8%-43.0% +86.3%
3 years, per year -24.9%-0.3%-17.1% +23.1%
5 years -70.6%-18.4%-31.8% +68.6%
5 years, per year -21.7%-4.0%-7.4% +11.0%
10 years -32.4%-0.1%+27.4% +258.0%
10 years, per year -3.8%0.0%+2.5% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCEWLKPWLKSPY
Volatility, 1Y 51.7%18.5%43.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 47.1%17.8%38.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.400.210.46 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.270.34-0.40 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -79.6%-38.8%-65.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -30.5%-11.0%-47.1% -1.8%
52-week high $69.24$23.72$123.39 $779.14
52-week low $35.53$17.87$56.38 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCEWLKPWLK
P/E now vs peer median -4.5xmedian 21.6x 12.9xmedian 21.6x -6.8xmedian 21.6x
P/S now vs peer median 0.5xmedian 1.4x 0.6xmedian 1.4x 0.7xmedian 1.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 95.3xmedian 12.4x 2.2xmedian 12.4x -154.2xmedian 12.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 7.5xmedian 15.8x 1.8xmedian 15.8x -31.5xmedian 15.8x
P/B now vs peer median 1.2xmedian 1.6x 1.0xmedian 1.6x 0.9xmedian 1.6x
PEG now vs peer median 0.11median 1.66 —median 1.66 0.16median 1.66

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCEWLKPWLK
Revenue $9.71B $1.23B $11.29B
Gross profit $2.03B $384.80M $1.09B
Operating income -$692.00M $355.62M -$1.25B
Net income -$1.16B $334.49M -$1.21B
Free cash flow $708.00M $409.14M -$265.00M
R&D $120.00M – –
EPS (diluted) $-10.60 – $-9.61
Cash & equivalents $1.36B $49.32M $1.64B
Total debt $12.01B $1.60B $5.07B
Shares (diluted) 110.25M – 128.50M
Enterprise value -$474.51M $565.05M -$877.23M

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCEWLKPWLK
P/E -4.5x 12.9x -6.8x
P/FCF 7.5x 1.8x -31.5x
P/Operating cash flow 5.4x 1.6x 13.2x
P/S 0.5x 0.6x 0.7x
P/B 1.2x 1.0x 0.9x
P/Tangible book 3.5x 1.0x 1.0x
EV/EBITDA 95.3x 2.2x -154.2x
EV/EBIT -23.0x 3.1x -9.3x
EV/Revenue 1.6x 0.9x 1.0x
EV/FCF 22.5x 2.7x -43.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 16.2x 2.4x 18.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.11 – 0.16

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCEWLKPWLK
Revenue growth (1Y) -2.2% 12.1% -4.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -1.9% -3.0% -6.6%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -5.7% 4.8% -17.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -3.3% 0.2% -26.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) 11.1% 4.7% -1,286%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -39.7% 0.0% -39.3%
Net income growth (1Y) 29.1% 4.7% -3,089%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -42.8% -0.2% -42.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 29.0% – -1,740%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -42.8% – -43.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -3.5% 48.6% -34.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -16.2% -1.1% -39.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 12.0% 67.7% -390.7%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -13.2% -2.6% -29.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCEWLKPWLK
Gross margin 20.9% 31.2% 9.6%
EBITDA margin 1.7% 40.0% -0.7%
Operating margin -7.1% 28.8% -11.0%
Pretax margin -11.6% 27.1% -11.4%
Net margin -12.0% 4.7% -10.9%
FCF margin 7.3% 33.1% -2.3%
Operating cash flow margin 10.1% 37.7% 5.6%
Return on equity -25.4% 42.8% -13.0%
Return on assets -5.3% 27.3% -6.1%
Return on invested capital -4.1% 30.1% -8.0%
Return on capital employed -3.9% 30.1% -7.2%
Asset turnover 0.5x 1.0x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -0.8x 1.4x -0.5x
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% – 0.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCEWLKPWLK
Debt / assets 56.1% 32.8% 26.1%
Debt / equity 2.6x 0.5x 0.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 63.7x 0.7x -42.9x
Debt / FCF 17.0x 1.0x -19.1x
Liabilities / assets 78.6% 36.8% 52.6%
Equity / assets 21.4% 63.2% 47.4%
Interest coverage -1.0x 16.4x -6.1x
Current ratio 1.4x 3.4x 2.5x
Quick ratio 0.8x 1.9x 1.7x
Cash ratio 0.3x 1.1x 0.8x
Altman Z-score 1.29 – 1.69

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCEWLKPWLK
Dividend yield 0.2% 8.9% 3.2%
Net buyback yield – – 0.8%
Shareholder yield 0.2% 8.9% 4.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) -1.1% 19.9% -22.5%
Payout ratio (FCF) 1.8% 16.2% -103.0%
Dividend growth (1Y) -91.8% 0.0% 1.1%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -65.0% 0.0% 14.1%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCEWLKPWLK
Forward P/E 7.6xFY2026 14.4xFY2026 38.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $6.33FY2026 $1.47FY2026 $1.70FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +59.0%FY2026 +6.5%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after -0.2% +20.4% +25.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $9.75BFY2026 $1.31BFY2026 $12.04BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +2.2%FY2026 +11.8%FY2026 +7.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +7.8% +16.9% -3.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCEWLKPWLK
Held by institutions 100.0% 29.1% 31.0%
Institutions holding 458 56 362
Change in shares held, QoQ +10.8% -0.2% -9.9%
Institutions buying 246 26 199
Institutions selling 138 13 118
Buyers to sellers 1.78 2.00 1.69

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CEWLKPWLK
CE 1.00 0.19 0.61
WLKP 0.19 1.00 0.34
WLK 0.61 0.34 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CE, WLKP and WLK?

Westlake (WLK) is the largest by market capitalisation: Celanese (CE) $5.35B, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) $740.87M, Westlake (WLK) $8.50B.

Which company is growing faster?

Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Celanese (CE) -2.2%, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) +12.1%, Westlake (WLK) -4.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) has the highest net margin (Celanese (CE) -12.0%, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) 4.7%, Westlake (WLK) -10.9%). On return on invested capital, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) leads (Celanese (CE) -4.1%, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) 30.1%, Westlake (WLK) -8.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Celanese (CE) returned the most: Celanese (CE) +14.0%, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) +6.3%, Westlake (WLK) -17.6%. Over five years, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) compounded fastest (Celanese (CE) -21.7%/yr, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) -4.0%/yr, Westlake (WLK) -7.4%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) has the highest dividend yield: Celanese (CE) 0.00%, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) 0.09%, Westlake (WLK) 0.03%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) has been the steadiest (Celanese (CE) 51.7%, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) 18.5%, Westlake (WLK) 43.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CE, WLKP and WLK?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.