Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.01 EPS

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $284.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $280.76 million. Westlake Chemical Partners had a net margin of 4.56% and a return on equity of 6.25%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share.

Westlake Chemical Partners Price Performance

NYSE:WLKP traded up $0.13 on Thursday, reaching $22.09. 11,568 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 27,006. The company has a quick ratio of 3.94, a current ratio of 4.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.14. The firm has a market cap of $778.23 million, a PE ratio of 14.34 and a beta of 1.08. Westlake Chemical Partners has a 12 month low of $20.86 and a 12 month high of $23.68.

Westlake Chemical Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.4714 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.54%. Westlake Chemical Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 122.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Westlake Chemical Partners from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westlake Chemical Partners

In other Westlake Chemical Partners news, SVP Andrew Kenner purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $22.30 per share, with a total value of $111,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president now directly owns 141,609 shares in the company, valued at $3,157,880.70. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have acquired a total of 24,230 shares of company stock valued at $537,587 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.