Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Acquires 936,376 Shares of Western Midstream Partners, LP $WES

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs increased its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 10.9% in the fourth quarter, adding 936,376 shares and bringing its total holding to 9.56 million shares valued at about $377.7 million.
• Western Midstream reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.85 versus the $0.74 estimate and revenue of $1.12 billion, with sales up 22.5% year over year.
• The partnership raised its dividend to $0.93 per share quarterly, or $3.72 annualized, implying an 8.2% yield; analysts currently have a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $44.75.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES - Free Report) by 10.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,562,213 shares of the pipeline company's stock after acquiring an additional 936,376 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 2.34% of Western Midstream Partners worth $377,707,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of WES. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Western Midstream Partners in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 76.2% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 793 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates purchased a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in Western Midstream Partners by 86.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 908 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. 84.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Midstream Partners Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WES opened at $45.19 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $17.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.77, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.68. Western Midstream Partners, LP has a twelve month low of $36.90 and a twelve month high of $48.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.34. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.82 and a 200 day moving average of $41.37.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.11. Western Midstream Partners had a return on equity of 33.89% and a net margin of 29.98%.The business had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.79 EPS. The company's revenue was up 22.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Western Midstream Partners, LP will post 3.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Midstream Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st were given a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.2%. This is a boost from Western Midstream Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. Western Midstream Partners's payout ratio is 121.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WES. Stifel Nicolaus set a $46.00 price objective on Western Midstream Partners and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Western Midstream Partners from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Western Midstream Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $41.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $44.00 to $43.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Midstream Partners presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $44.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Western Midstream Partners news, Director Robert G. Phillips acquired 1,250 shares of Western Midstream Partners stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $40.19 per share, for a total transaction of $50,237.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,296 shares of the company's stock, valued at $212,846.24. This represents a 30.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

Western Midstream Partners Company Profile

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.

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