Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) had its target price raised by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $39.00 to $41.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the pipeline company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 0.36% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on WES. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Western Midstream Partners from $44.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Western Midstream Partners from $43.00 to $42.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen cut Western Midstream Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Western Midstream Partners from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.71.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Performance

NYSE WES opened at $40.85 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $41.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.67. Western Midstream Partners has a 52-week low of $33.60 and a 52-week high of $44.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.62 and a beta of 0.76.

Western Midstream Partners (NYSE:WES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.44). Western Midstream Partners had a net margin of 30.52% and a return on equity of 33.14%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.85 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Western Midstream Partners will post 4.02 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert G. Phillips bought 1,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $40.19 per share, with a total value of $50,237.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $212,846.24. This represents a 30.89% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Christopher B. Dial sold 5,879 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.35, for a total value of $248,975.65. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 185,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,835,215.85. This trade represents a 3.08% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WES. Texas Yale Capital Corp. grew its holdings in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 575,809 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $22,624,000 after purchasing an additional 36,438 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 18.9% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 186,853 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $7,341,000 after purchasing an additional 29,754 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in Western Midstream Partners in the third quarter valued at about $1,158,000. Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Western Midstream Partners during the third quarter worth about $2,992,000. Finally, CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT grew its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 5.6% during the third quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT now owns 1,270,900 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $49,934,000 after buying an additional 67,000 shares during the last quarter. 84.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.