Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on WLKP. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Westlake Chemical Partners to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Westlake Chemical Partners Stock Performance

NYSE WLKP opened at $18.46 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.32, a current ratio of 2.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Westlake Chemical Partners has a twelve month low of $17.75 and a twelve month high of $25.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $19.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.36. The firm has a market cap of $650.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.72.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.01). Westlake Chemical Partners had a net margin of 4.34% and a return on equity of 6.00%. The business had revenue of $308.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $303.00 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Westlake Chemical Partners will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be given a dividend of $0.4714 per share. This represents a $1.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 10th. Westlake Chemical Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 135.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westlake Chemical Partners

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC raised its position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC now owns 24,855 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $574,000 after buying an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 4.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,629 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $389,000 after acquiring an additional 751 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Westlake Chemical Partners by 5.9% during the third quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,737 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $414,000 after acquiring an additional 1,106 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Westlake Chemical Partners during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 7.2% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 22,654 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $476,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.28% of the company’s stock.

Westlake Chemical Partners Company Profile

Westlake Chemical Partners LP acquires, develops, and operates ethylene production facilities and related assets in the United States. The company’s ethylene production facilities primarily convert ethane into ethylene. It also sells ethylene co-products, such as propylene, crude butadiene, pyrolysis gasoline, and hydrogen directly to third parties on either a spot or contract basis.