Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Shares Cross Above 50-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP) passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.51 and traded as high as $21.36. Westlake Chemical Partners shares last traded at $21.1250, with a volume of 50,903 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WLKP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Westlake Chemical Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Westlake Chemical Partners Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $744.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.09, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $308.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $303.00 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Westlake Chemical Partners LP will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be given a dividend of $0.4714 per share. This represents a $1.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 6th. Westlake Chemical Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 135.00%.

Institutional Trading of Westlake Chemical Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new position in Westlake Chemical Partners in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Westlake Chemical Partners by 45.8% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 10,153 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $224,000 after acquiring an additional 3,187 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 25.0% in the third quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in Westlake Chemical Partners during the 2nd quarter worth about $387,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Westlake Chemical Partners by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,395 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $388,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.28% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Chemical Partners Company Profile

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE: WLKP) is a publicly traded master limited partnership sponsored by Westlake Chemical Corporation. The partnership owns, operates and acquires a portfolio of ethylene and vinyl manufacturing assets throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. As a downstream producer of basic chemicals and intermediates, WLKP supplies key industrial feedstocks to customers in a variety of end markets.

WLKP’s operations are organized into two primary segments: olefins and vinyls.