Brokerages Set Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) Price Target at $30.75

Shares of Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Hold" by the thirteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $30.75.

Several research firms have weighed in on WES. Citigroup cut Western Midstream Partners from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $30.00 to $34.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Raymond James reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd.

Western Midstream Partners Price Performance

Shares of WES stock traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $34.04. The company had a trading volume of 1,153,359 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,275,796. The company has a market capitalization of $12.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 2.83. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $33.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.97. Western Midstream Partners has a 52-week low of $24.89 and a 52-week high of $36.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $858.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Western Midstream Partners will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 1st were given a $0.575 dividend. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 31st. Western Midstream Partners's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Midstream Partners

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

Institutional Trading of Western Midstream Partners

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 33,519,544 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $912,737,000 after acquiring an additional 3,855,558 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 13.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 20,746,835 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $564,936,000 after buying an additional 2,520,712 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,140,481 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $325,970,000 after buying an additional 302,681 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 14.7% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,280,595 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $183,770,000 after buying an additional 802,709 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 14.2% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 5,012,565 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $126,417,000 after buying an additional 623,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.94% of the company's stock.

Western Midstream Partners Company Profile

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.