Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP) Short Interest Update

Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE:WLKP - Get Free Report) saw a significant decrease in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 123,300 shares, a decrease of 12.0% from the January 31st total of 140,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 40,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 0.6% of the company's stock are sold short.

Westlake Chemical Partners Stock Up 0.6 %

Westlake Chemical Partners stock traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $24.20. The company had a trading volume of 18,143 shares, compared to its average volume of 39,515. The stock has a market cap of $852.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.83 and a beta of 1.09. Westlake Chemical Partners has a 1 year low of $21.19 and a 1 year high of $25.04. The company has a quick ratio of 4.46, a current ratio of 4.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The business has a fifty day moving average of $23.88 and a 200 day moving average of $23.18.

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $290.06 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $262.00 million. Westlake Chemical Partners had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 7.31%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Westlake Chemical Partners will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Westlake Chemical Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.4714 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. 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 dividend yield of 7.79%. Westlake Chemical Partners's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 106.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westlake Chemical Partners

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 558,919 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $12,933,000 after acquiring an additional 28,430 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Global Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Global Advisors LLC now owns 45,873 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,062,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners during the fourth quarter worth approximately $175,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners during the fourth quarter worth approximately $456,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 35,136 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $813,000 after purchasing an additional 4,253 shares during the period. 78.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.