Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) Price Target Increased to $39.00 by Analysts at Mizuho

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) had its price target increased by Mizuho from $34.00 to $39.00 in a report published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on WES. Raymond James reissued a market perform rating on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Western Midstream Partners from an underperform rating to a peer perform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Western Midstream Partners from a buy rating to a neutral rating and upped their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $31.09.

Western Midstream Partners Price Performance

Shares of WES opened at $35.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $34.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.82. The stock has a market cap of $13.55 billion, a PE ratio of 13.70 and a beta of 2.82. Western Midstream Partners has a 1-year low of $25.04 and a 1-year high of $36.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The pipeline company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.04). Western Midstream Partners had a net margin of 32.72% and a return on equity of 33.58%. The firm had revenue of $858.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $850.23 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.85 earnings per share. Western Midstream Partners’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Midstream Partners will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Western Midstream Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be issued a $0.875 dividend. This represents a $3.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.83%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. This is an increase from Western Midstream Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Western Midstream Partners’s payout ratio is currently 134.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kenneth F. Owen purchased 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $33.96 per share, with a total value of $237,720.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 32,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,111,510.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Western Midstream Partners news, Director Lisa A. Stewart purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $34.87 per share, with a total value of $87,175.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 30,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,071,555.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth F. Owen purchased 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $33.96 per share, with a total value of $237,720.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 32,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,111,510.80. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WES. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. American National Bank lifted its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 34.5% during the first quarter. American National Bank now owns 1,190 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. Retirement Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 40.2% during 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 period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. purchased a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $74,000. 42.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Midstream Partners Company Profile

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.