Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) Short Interest Update

Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) was the target of a large drop in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,340,000 shares, a drop of 15.0% from the January 31st total of 7,460,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,230,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.2 days. Currently, 3.0% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of WES opened at $38.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 2.88. Western Midstream Partners has a 12-month low of $33.39 and a 12-month high of $43.33. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $40.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a $0.875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $3.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.02%. Western Midstream Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 86.85%.

Institutional Trading of Western Midstream Partners

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 42.1% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 108,367 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $4,146,000 after purchasing an additional 32,119 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 6.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 996,018 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $38,108,000 after buying an additional 60,603 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management boosted its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 293.1% in the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 29,878 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,143,000 after purchasing an additional 22,277 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 322.1% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 406,587 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $15,556,000 after purchasing an additional 310,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Western Midstream Partners by 60.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,785,105 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $68,298,000 after purchasing an additional 670,440 shares in the last quarter. 84.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WES. US Capital Advisors upgraded shares of Western Midstream Partners from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Western Midstream Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Western Midstream Partners from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a report on Monday, December 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.43.

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.