Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Trims Stake in Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its holdings in Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE:WES) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 160,093 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 3,753 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Western Midstream Partners were worth $6,152,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Western Midstream Partners by 40.9% in the fourth quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 104,884 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $4,031,000 after purchasing an additional 30,449 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 555.6% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,180 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 24,478 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $941,000 after buying an additional 1,337 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Midstream Partners by 50.4% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 21,353 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $821,000 after acquiring an additional 7,155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Western Midstream Partners by 34.7% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,935 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.82% of the company’s stock.

Western Midstream Partners Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Western Midstream Partners stock opened at $41.79 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Western Midstream Partners, LP has a 52-week low of $33.64 and a 52-week high of $43.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 2.88. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $40.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.39.

Western Midstream Partners Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a $0.875 dividend. This represents a $3.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. Western Midstream Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on WES. US Capital Advisors upgraded Western Midstream Partners from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Western Midstream Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of Western Midstream Partners in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Midstream Partners currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.43.

Western Midstream Partners Company Profile

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.