Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $41.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a report on Thursday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.89.

Western Midstream Partners Price Performance

WES opened at $44.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Western Midstream Partners has a 52-week low of $36.90 and a 52-week high of $50.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.35 billion, a PE ratio of 13.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $47.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.13.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.08. Western Midstream Partners had a return on equity of 33.13% and a net margin of 29.44%. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Western Midstream Partners will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Frederick Forthuber bought 5,140 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $48.62 per share, with a total value of $249,906.80. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 5,140 shares in the company, valued at $249,906.80. The trade was a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Midstream Partners

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Militia Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Western Midstream Partners during the first quarter valued at approximately $8,244,000. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Western Midstream Partners by 6.7% in the first quarter. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,234,879 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $50,840,000 after acquiring an additional 77,202 shares during the period. Berkley W R Corp raised its position in Western Midstream Partners by 42.8% in the first quarter. Berkley W R Corp now owns 1,266,970 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $52,161,000 after acquiring an additional 379,807 shares during the period. Adams Asset Advisors LLC raised its position in Western Midstream Partners by 8.9% in the third quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC now owns 408,023 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $18,104,000 after acquiring an additional 33,200 shares during the period. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH boosted its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 45.3% during the 1st quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 78,819 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $3,245,000 after acquiring an additional 24,573 shares during the last quarter. 84.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Western Midstream Partners

Western Midstream Partners, L.P. (NYSE:WES) is a master limited partnership that owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure in the United States. The company provides gathering, processing, transportation, storage and treating services for natural gas, crude oil, natural gas liquids and produced water.

Western Midstream’s assets include gathering systems, processing plants, pipelines, storage facilities and water-handling infrastructure. These facilities connect oil and gas producers with downstream markets and are generally supported by long-term commercial arrangements.