Analysts Set Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) PT at $30.75

Shares of Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $30.64.

Several brokerages have commented on WES. Citigroup downgraded Western Midstream Partners from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Wolfe Research raised Western Midstream Partners from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Midstream Partners

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

Institutional Trading of Western Midstream Partners

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WES. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new stake in Western Midstream Partners in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. American National Bank grew its position in Western Midstream Partners by 34.5% in the 1st quarter. American National Bank now owns 1,190 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Western Midstream Partners in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. acquired a new stake in Western Midstream Partners in the 4th quarter valued at $74,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.94% of the company’s stock.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE WES opened at $35.67 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The company has a market cap of $13.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.72 and a beta of 2.83. Western Midstream Partners has a 12 month low of $24.89 and a 12 month high of $36.79. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $33.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.21.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The pipeline company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $858.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Western Midstream Partners will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Midstream Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be given a dividend of $0.875 per share. This represents a $3.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.81%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. This is an increase from Western Midstream Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Western Midstream Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.46%.

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.