Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) Given Average Recommendation of "Reduce" by Analysts

Key Points

• Western Midstream Partners, LP has received an average rating of "Reduce" from analysts, with two sell ratings, two hold ratings, and one buy rating.
• The company's quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $0.87, exceeding analysts' expectations, but revenue was slightly below projections at $942.32 million.
• Western Midstream Partners announced a quarterly dividend of $0.91, yielding 9.4%, though the payout ratio is notably high at 112.00%.

Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" from the five analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $39.60.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WES shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WES traded up $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $39.18. 1,274,968 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,441,604. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. Western Midstream Partners has a 12 month low of $33.60 and a 12 month high of $43.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.06 and a beta of 1.13. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $39.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.97.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.05. Western Midstream Partners had a return on equity of 37.70% and a net margin of 34.45%.The company had revenue of $942.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $954.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Western Midstream Partners will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Midstream Partners Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.3%. Western Midstream Partners's dividend payout ratio is currently 112.00%.

Institutional Trading of Western Midstream Partners

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WES. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new stake in Western Midstream Partners in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $156,967,000. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 33,824,487 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,385,451,000 after purchasing an additional 2,400,891 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 24,417,770 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,000,152,000 after buying an additional 1,608,609 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 23.1% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 7,273,186 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $279,509,000 after buying an additional 1,366,341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its position in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 90.5% during the 1st quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 985,718 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $40,375,000 after buying an additional 468,303 shares in the last quarter. 84.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Western Midstream Partners

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.