Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Stock Passes Below 50-Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP) crossed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $22.86 and traded as low as $21.70. Westlake Chemical Partners shares last traded at $22.0850, with a volume of 47,002 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WLKP shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Westlake Chemical Partners from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Westlake Chemical Partners from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Westlake Chemical Partners currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Westlake Chemical Partners Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $22.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $778.50 million, a P/E ratio of 13.47, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 3.57 and a current ratio of 3.65.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.03). Westlake Chemical Partners had a return on equity of 7.15% and a net margin of 4.69%.The company had revenue of $305.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $522.00 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Westlake Chemical Partners LP will post 1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were given a $0.4714 dividend. This represents a $1.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Westlake Chemical Partners’s payout ratio is currently 115.24%.

Institutional Trading of Westlake Chemical Partners

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Westlake Chemical Partners by 142.9% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,302 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 3,708 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Westlake Chemical Partners by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 7,749 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 1,050 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Bank AR bought a new stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the 4th quarter worth $173,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 45.8% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 10,153 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 3,187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the fourth quarter worth $224,000. 78.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Westlake Chemical Partners Company Profile

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE: WLKP) is a publicly traded master limited partnership sponsored by Westlake Chemical Corporation. The partnership owns, operates and acquires a portfolio of ethylene and vinyl manufacturing assets throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. As a downstream producer of basic chemicals and intermediates, WLKP supplies key industrial feedstocks to customers in a variety of end markets.

WLKP’s operations are organized into two primary segments: olefins and vinyls.