Short Interest in Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) Grows By 34.7%

Key Points

• Western Midstream Partners experienced a significant increase in short interest of 34.7% in August, with a total of 7.3 million shares sold short, indicating heightened market skepticism.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, reflecting an annualized amount of $3.64, which translates to a high yield of 9.6%.
• Analysts have mixed views on the stock, with a consensus price target of $39.60 and ratings ranging from Buy to Sell, which suggests uncertainty in the stock's performance going forward.

Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 7,300,000 shares, a growth of 34.7% from the July 31st total of 5,420,000 shares. Approximately 3.4% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,090,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.7 days. Based on an average daily volume of 1,090,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.7 days. Approximately 3.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Western Midstream Partners Price Performance

Shares of WES stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $38.40. The stock had a trading volume of 963,135 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,078,934. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $39.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick 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 $14.64 billion, a PE ratio of 11.82 and a beta of 1.17.

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

Western Midstream Partners Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.5%. Western Midstream Partners's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 112.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WES. Mizuho lifted 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, August 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $39.60.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 10.4% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 26,483 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,085,000 after acquiring an additional 2,485 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 30.6% in the first quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 461,365 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $18,898,000 after buying an additional 108,021 shares during the period. CFM Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 28.3% in the first quarter. CFM Wealth Partners LLC now owns 44,944 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,841,000 after buying an additional 9,904 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the first quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH increased its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 254.3% in the first quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 29,180 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,195,000 after buying an additional 20,943 shares during the period. 84.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.