Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Seven analysts give Western Midstream an average recommendation of Hold (1 sell, 5 hold, 1 buy) with a 12‑month target of $41.71, and recent notes show small target tweaks from Wells Fargo, JPMorgan and Stifel.
• The company missed expectations this quarter with EPS of $0.47 versus estimates of $0.91 and revenue of $1.03B versus $1.06B, although revenue was up 11.1% year‑over‑year.
• Western Midstream pays a $0.91 quarterly dividend (annualized $3.64) for an 8.9% yield, but the payout ratio of 121.33% signals potential sustainability concerns.

Shares of Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the seven analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $41.7143.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Western Midstream Partners from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Western Midstream Partners from $43.00 to $42.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on 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.

Insider Activity at Western Midstream Partners

In related news, Director Robert G. Phillips purchased 1,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $40.19 per share, for a total transaction of $50,237.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 5,296 shares of the company's stock, valued at $212,846.24. This trade represents a 30.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Christopher B. Dial sold 5,879 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.35, for a total value of $248,975.65. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 185,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,835,215.85. This represents a 3.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Western Midstream Partners

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new stake in Western Midstream Partners in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $300,257,000. Texas Yale Capital Corp. raised its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 575,809 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $22,624,000 after buying an additional 36,438 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 18.9% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 186,853 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $7,341,000 after buying an additional 29,754 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,158,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 9.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,027,865 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $40,385,000 after buying an additional 92,728 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.82% of the company's stock.

Western Midstream Partners Price Performance

WES stock opened at $41.07 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $16.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.69 and a beta of 0.73. Western Midstream Partners has a twelve month low of $35.07 and a twelve month high of $44.74. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.44). Western Midstream Partners had a net margin of 30.52% and a return on equity of 33.14%. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Western Midstream Partners will post 4.02 EPS for the current year.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.9%. Western Midstream Partners's payout ratio is presently 121.33%.

About Western Midstream Partners

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.