Custom Index Systems LLC Sells 3,322 Shares of Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES)

Custom Index Systems LLC cut its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 40,526 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 3,322 shares during the period. Western Midstream Partners accounts for about 0.9% of Custom Index Systems LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Custom Index Systems LLC’s holdings in Western Midstream Partners were worth $1,610,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WES. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. American National Bank lifted its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 34.5% in the first quarter. American National Bank now owns 1,190 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Group LLC lifted its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 40.2% in the first quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 1,591 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 2nd quarter valued at about $78,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Western Midstream Partners during the 1st quarter worth about $82,000. 42.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WES has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. StockNews.com raised Western Midstream Partners from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Western Midstream Partners from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.38.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Performance

NYSE:WES opened at $37.76 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.29. The stock has a market cap of $14.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.64, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 2.87. Western Midstream Partners, LP has a 1-year low of $25.69 and a 1-year high of $42.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.09. Western Midstream Partners had a return on equity of 47.19% and a net margin of 44.01%. The company had revenue of $905.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $904.94 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 22.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Western Midstream Partners, LP will post 4.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $0.875 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $3.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.27%. Western Midstream Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 98.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total transaction of $697,125,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 165,681,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,923,116,413.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Western Midstream Partners

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.