Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Friday . 84,312 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 105% from the previous session’s volume of 41,117 shares.The stock last traded at $18.64 and had previously closed at $18.69.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WLKP. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Westlake Chemical Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, Zacks Research raised Westlake Chemical Partners to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Westlake Chemical Partners Trading Up 0.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 2.37 and a quick ratio of 2.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $20.72 and a 200 day moving average of $21.81. The firm has a market cap of $659.69 million, a P/E ratio of 13.31, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.72.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). Westlake Chemical Partners had a return on equity of 6.00% and a net margin of 4.34%.The company had revenue of $308.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $303.00 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Westlake Chemical Partners LP will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.4714 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.1%. Westlake Chemical Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 135.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Jean-Marc Gilson bought 1,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $21.86 per share, with a total value of $27,325.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 10,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,611.88. This represents a 13.58% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC boosted its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC now owns 24,855 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $574,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 4.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,629 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $389,000 after buying an additional 751 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 5.9% in the third quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,737 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $414,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Westlake Chemical Partners in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 103,390 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,387,000 after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.28% of the company’s stock.

About Westlake Chemical Partners

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.