Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $23.70 and last traded at $23.70, with a volume of 7125 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Barclays raised Westlake Chemical Partners to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th.

Westlake Chemical Partners Stock Up 0.7 %

The company has a market capitalization of $835.89 million, a P/E ratio of 13.55 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $22.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.63. The company has a current ratio of 4.53, a quick ratio of 4.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $277.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $244.16 million. Westlake Chemical Partners had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 7.31%. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.37 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Westlake Chemical Partners LP will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were paid a $0.471 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.94%. Westlake Chemical Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 108.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake Chemical Partners

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 2,141.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 32,763 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $734,000 after buying an additional 31,301 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 2,178.0% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,230,436 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,984,000 after buying an additional 2,132,523 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the third quarter valued at $78,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the second quarter valued at $181,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 7.5% in the third quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,909 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 1,041 shares in the last quarter. 78.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.