Westlake Chemical Corporation (WLK)

Pretax margin

		Dec 31, 2023	Sep 30, 2023	Jun 30, 2023	Mar 31, 2023	Dec 31, 2022	Sep 30, 2022	Jun 30, 2022	Mar 31, 2022	Dec 31, 2021	Sep 30, 2021	Jun 30, 2021	Mar 31, 2021	Dec 31, 2020	Sep 30, 2020	Jun 30, 2020	Mar 31, 2020	Dec 31, 2019	Sep 30, 2019	Jun 30, 2019	Mar 31, 2019
Earnings before tax but after interest (EBT) (ttm)	US$ in thousands	657,000	1,514,000	1,644,000	2,410,000	2,896,000	3,435,000	3,750,000	3,297,000	2,622,000	1,940,000	1,182,000	498,000	288,000	202,000	368,000	530,000	529,000	637,000	810,000	1,023,000
Revenue (ttm)	US$ in thousands	12,548,000	13,021,000	13,862,000	15,094,000	15,794,000	16,002,000	15,101,000	13,477,000	11,778,000	10,236,000	9,079,000	7,929,000	7,504,000	7,422,000	7,590,000	8,025,000	8,118,000	8,230,000	8,419,000	8,510,000
Pretax margin		5.24%	11.63%	11.86%	15.97%	18.34%	21.47%	24.83%	24.46%	22.26%	18.95%	13.02%	6.28%	3.84%	2.72%	4.85%	6.60%	6.52%	7.74%	9.62%	12.02%

December 31, 2023 calculation

Pretax margin = EBT (ttm) ÷ Revenue (ttm)
= $657,000K ÷ $12,548,000K
= 5.24%

The pre-tax margin of Westlake Corporation has shown a declining trend over the past eight quarters. It decreased from 24.85% in Q1 2022 to 5.58% in Q4 2023. This decline indicates that the company's profitability before taxes has been diminishing over time. Factors such as increasing expenses or decreasing revenues may be contributing to this trend. It is essential for the company to closely monitor and address the factors affecting its pre-tax margin to ensure sustainable profitability in the future.