Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) Director Frederick Forthuber Purchases 5,140 Shares of Stock

Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) Director Frederick Forthuber acquired 5,140 shares of Western Midstream Partners stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $48.62 per share, with a total value of $249,906.80. Following the purchase, the director owned 5,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $249,906.80. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Performance

Shares of WES traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $48.28. 643,313 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,301,168. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.95 billion, a PE ratio of 15.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.68. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.20. Western Midstream Partners, LP has a 52-week low of $36.90 and a 52-week high of $48.84.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.13 billion. Western Midstream Partners had a net margin of 29.44% and a return on equity of 34.79%. Western Midstream Partners’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Western Midstream Partners, LP will post 3.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.7%. Western Midstream Partners’s payout ratio is currently 116.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley raised Western Midstream Partners from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $51.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $46.00 price target on Western Midstream Partners and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Western Midstream Partners from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Midstream Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 35,074,357 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,385,437,000 after purchasing an additional 299,631 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 0.3% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 24,292,437 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $954,450,000 after purchasing an additional 81,183 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,562,213 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $377,707,000 after buying an additional 936,376 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. increased its position in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 8,539,175 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $337,297,000 after buying an additional 1,163,991 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 98.1% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,446,475 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $215,136,000 after buying an additional 2,696,439 shares during the last quarter. 84.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Western Midstream Partners

Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE: WES) is a midstream energy infrastructure company that owns, operates and develops an integrated network of crude oil, natural gas and produced water gathering, processing, transportation and storage assets in the United States. The partnership’s primary offerings include pipeline transportation, fractionation services, natural gas liquids (NGL) logistics and produced water handling. Through its fee-based and commodity-based contracts, Western Midstream provides its customers with essential services that support efficient energy production and distribution.

The company’s asset portfolio spans key onshore basins, including the Delaware Basin in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, the San Juan Basin in New Mexico and Colorado, and the Denver-Julesburg Basin in Colorado.