Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) Sets New 52-Week High at $35.39

Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $35.39 and last traded at $35.37, with a volume of 222116 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.14.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WES has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Bank of America lowered Western Midstream Partners from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $27.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 13th. Citigroup downgraded Western Midstream Partners from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $30.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Midstream Partners currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.75.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Up 1.1 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.09. The company has a market capitalization of $13.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.52 and a beta of 2.83.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The pipeline company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $858.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $850.23 million. Western Midstream Partners had a return on equity of 33.58% and a net margin of 32.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.85 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Western Midstream Partners, LP will post 3.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 1st were issued a $0.575 dividend. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 31st. Western Midstream Partners’s payout ratio is 88.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Midstream Partners

In related news, Director Lisa A. Stewart acquired 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $34.87 per share, for a total transaction of $87,175.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 30,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,071,555.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Kenneth F. Owen acquired 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $33.96 per share, with a total value of $237,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 32,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,111,510.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Lisa A. Stewart bought 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $34.87 per share, with a total value of $87,175.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,730 shares in the company, valued at $1,071,555.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 15.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,571,428 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $124,480,000 after purchasing an additional 622,108 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 97.2% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 311,920 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $8,494,000 after buying an additional 153,743 shares during the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 33,519,544 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $912,737,000 after purchasing an additional 3,855,558 shares during the period. Spirit of America Management Corp NY raised its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 178,100 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $4,850,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 25.5% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 93,344 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,542,000 after purchasing an additional 18,983 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.94% of the company’s stock.

About Western Midstream Partners

Western Midstream Partners, LP, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a midstream energy company primarily in the United States. It is involved in gathering, compressing, treating, processing, and transporting natural gas; gathering, stabilizing, and transporting condensate, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and crude oil; and gathering and disposing produced water.