Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 112,200 shares, a decrease of 15.6% from the February 28th total of 133,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 38,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days. Approximately 0.6% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake Chemical Partners

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 32.2% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,337 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Westlake Chemical Partners in the 4th quarter valued at about $175,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners during the 4th quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $357,000 after buying an additional 512 shares during the last quarter. 78.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Westlake Chemical Partners Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Westlake Chemical Partners stock opened at $23.12 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $814.55 million, a PE ratio of 13.21 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $23.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.27. Westlake Chemical Partners has a 52 week low of $21.19 and a 52 week high of $25.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 4.46 and a current ratio of 4.53.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $290.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $262.00 million. Westlake Chemical Partners had a return on equity of 7.31% and a net margin of 5.40%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Westlake Chemical Partners will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.4714 dividend. This is a positive change from Westlake Chemical Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $1.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Westlake Chemical Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 106.21%.

About Westlake Chemical Partners

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.