Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) Receives $45.00 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $45.00.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $44.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 12th. US Capital Advisors upgraded Western Midstream Partners from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $46.00 price objective on Western Midstream Partners and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Performance

Shares of Western Midstream Partners stock opened at $43.53 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $17.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $43.62 and its 200-day moving average is $41.89. Western Midstream Partners has a one year low of $36.90 and a one year high of $48.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Western Midstream Partners had a return on equity of 33.89% and a net margin of 29.98%.Western Midstream Partners’s quarterly revenue was up 22.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.79 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Western Midstream Partners will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Midstream Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st were issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 1st. This is a boost from Western Midstream Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.5%. Western Midstream Partners’s dividend payout ratio is 121.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WES. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 6.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,525 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $330,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 17.0% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,878 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 999 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 6.0% in the second quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 23,029 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $891,000 after purchasing an additional 1,298 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 39.1% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 25,003 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $968,000 after purchasing an additional 7,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new position in Western Midstream Partners in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,172,000. 84.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Midstream Partners Company Profile

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.