Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Stock Rating Raised to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Westlake Chemical Partners to “Buy” from “Hold.” The stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $26.00 price target.
• WLKP opened at $21.23, with a market capitalization of approximately $748 million and a 52-week trading range of $17.75 to $23.88.
• The company slightly missed quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.40 in EPS versus $0.41 expected, while institutional investors own 78.28% of its shares.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Westlake Chemical Partners from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $26.00.

Westlake Chemical Partners Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE WLKP opened at $21.23 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $748.36 million, a P/E ratio of 12.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 3.44 and a quick ratio of 3.36. The stock's 50-day moving average is $21.37 and its 200-day moving average is $21.98. Westlake Chemical Partners has a one year low of $17.75 and a one year high of $23.88.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.01). Westlake Chemical Partners had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 7.25%. The business had revenue of $297.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $537.00 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Westlake Chemical Partners will post 1.50 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westlake Chemical Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WLKP. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $867,000. MGO One Seven LLC raised its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 10.0% in the third quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 12,760 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 1,160 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 36.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,582 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 2,833 shares in the last quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 1.1% in the first quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 1,582,007 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $34,947,000 after purchasing an additional 17,518 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Westlake Chemical Partners by 9.1% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,874 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.28% of the company's stock.

About Westlake Chemical Partners

Westlake Chemical Partners LP NYSE: WLKP is a master limited partnership that owns, operates and acquires ethylene production assets. Ethylene is a basic petrochemical used in the manufacture of plastics, polymers and other industrial products.

The partnership's operations are focused on ethylene production facilities in the United States, including assets in Louisiana and Kentucky. Its ethylene is sold primarily under long-term agreements to Westlake Corporation, its primary customer and sponsor, as well as to certain third-party customers.

Westlake Chemical Partners was formed in 2014 and became a publicly traded partnership that year.

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