Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) has been downgraded from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting a change in analysts' outlook on the stock.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a miss on expectations, with earnings per share at $0.41 compared to an estimate of $0.44, alongside a revenue of $297.12 million against a forecast of $301 million.
• Insider activity noted that Chairman James Chao sold 5,608 shares, reducing his ownership by over 40%, which may signal a lack of confidence in the company’s near-term performance.

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Sunday morning.

Westlake Chemical Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WLKP traded down $0.0950 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $22.0050. The stock had a trading volume of 19,989 shares, compared to its average volume of 33,652. The firm has a market cap of $775.46 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.77 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Westlake Chemical Partners has a fifty-two week low of $21.19 and a fifty-two week high of $25.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $22.11 and a 200-day moving average of $22.81.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $297.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $301.00 million. Westlake Chemical Partners had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 6.38%. Equities research analysts predict that Westlake Chemical Partners will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $0.4714 per share. This represents a $1.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. Westlake Chemical Partners's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 126.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Westlake Chemical Partners news, Chairman James Chao sold 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.10, for a total transaction of $81,770.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 13,908 shares of company stock worth $307,759. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Westlake Chemical Partners

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Fractal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,856,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $456,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 35,136 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $813,000 after buying an additional 4,253 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 558,919 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $12,933,000 after buying an additional 28,430 shares during the period. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 103,390 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,387,000 after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the period. 78.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Westlake Chemical Partners Company Profile

Westlake Chemical Partners LP acquires, develops, and operates ethylene production facilities and related assets in the United States. The company's ethylene production facilities primarily convert ethane into ethylene. It also sells ethylene co-products, such as propylene, crude butadiene, pyrolysis gasoline, and hydrogen directly to third parties on either a spot or contract basis.