Wall Street Zen Upgrades Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) to Buy

by · The Markets Daily

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP – Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Westlake Chemical Partners to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Westlake Chemical Partners has an average rating of “Hold”.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on WLKP

Westlake Chemical Partners Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Westlake Chemical Partners stock opened at $19.78 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $19.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.01. Westlake Chemical Partners has a twelve month low of $17.75 and a twelve month high of $25.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $697.25 million, a PE ratio of 14.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). Westlake Chemical Partners had a return on equity of 6.00% and a net margin of 4.34%.The firm had revenue of $308.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $303.00 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Westlake Chemical Partners will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake Chemical Partners

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in Westlake Chemical Partners by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC now owns 24,855 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $574,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 228,885 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,285,000 after buying an additional 8,424 shares during the period. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Westlake Chemical Partners by 24.6% in the second quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 37,923 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $838,000 after acquiring an additional 7,478 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Westlake Chemical Partners in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 12.6% in the second quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,631 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $412,000 after acquiring an additional 2,084 shares during the period. 78.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Westlake Chemical Partners

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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.

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