Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) Price Target Raised to $38.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) had its price target lifted by Royal Bank of Canada from $36.00 to $38.00 in a research note published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a sector perform rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on WES. StockNews.com raised Western Midstream Partners from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Mizuho lifted their target price on Western Midstream Partners from $34.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $34.38.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Performance

Shares of Western Midstream Partners stock opened at $37.93 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.43 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 2.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. Western Midstream Partners has a 52 week low of $25.69 and a 52 week high of $42.80. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.83.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $905.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $904.94 million. Western Midstream Partners had a net margin of 44.01% and a return on equity of 47.19%. Western Midstream Partners’s revenue was up 22.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Western Midstream Partners will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were issued a $0.875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $3.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.23%. Western Midstream Partners’s payout ratio is 98.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Western Midstream Partners news, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total value of $697,125,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 165,681,578 shares in the company, valued at $5,923,116,413.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Midstream Partners

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. American National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 34.5% during the first quarter. American National Bank now owns 1,190 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Group LLC increased its position 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 worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 2nd quarter valued at about $74,000. Finally, Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 2nd quarter valued at about $78,000. 42.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.