Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $24.66 and last traded at $24.55, with a volume of 43335 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.60.

Westlake Chemical Partners Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.95. The company has a market capitalization of $865.15 million, a PE ratio of 14.03 and a beta of 1.10. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $277.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $244.16 million. Westlake Chemical Partners had a return on equity of 7.31% and a net margin of 5.40%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Westlake Chemical Partners LP will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westlake Chemical Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.4714 per share. This is a boost from Westlake Chemical Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.89 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.68%. Westlake Chemical Partners’s payout ratio is presently 107.43%.

Institutional Trading of Westlake Chemical Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Westlake Chemical Partners by 32.2% in the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,337 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners during the third quarter worth about $78,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $211,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,909 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.28% of the company’s stock.

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.