Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

WES has been the subject of several other reports. US Capital Advisors raised Western Midstream Partners from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Western Midstream Partners from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Western Midstream Partners from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $51.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.00.

Western Midstream Partners Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:WES opened at $48.94 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.39, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.68. Western Midstream Partners has a 1-year low of $36.90 and a 1-year high of $49.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $45.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.35.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. Western Midstream Partners had a return on equity of 33.13% and a net margin of 29.44%.The firm’s revenue was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Western Midstream Partners will post 3.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frederick A. Forthuber bought 5,140 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $48.62 per share, with a total value of $249,906.80. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 5,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $249,906.80. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Western Midstream Partners

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WES. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Western Midstream Partners by 98.1% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,446,475 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $215,136,000 after purchasing an additional 2,696,439 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 106.9% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,005,252 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $118,707,000 after purchasing an additional 1,552,401 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. raised its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 8,539,175 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $337,297,000 after purchasing an additional 1,163,991 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,562,213 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $377,707,000 after buying an additional 936,376 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,268,000. 84.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Midstream Partners Company Profile

Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE: WES) is a midstream energy infrastructure company that owns, operates and develops an integrated network of crude oil, natural gas and produced water gathering, processing, transportation and storage assets in the United States. The partnership’s primary offerings include pipeline transportation, fractionation services, natural gas liquids (NGL) logistics and produced water handling. Through its fee-based and commodity-based contracts, Western Midstream provides its customers with essential services that support efficient energy production and distribution.

The company’s asset portfolio spans key onshore basins, including the Delaware Basin in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, the San Juan Basin in New Mexico and Colorado, and the Denver-Julesburg Basin in Colorado.