Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Westlake Chemical Partners (NYSE:WLKP) announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.03), Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $305.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $522.00 million. Westlake Chemical Partners had a net margin of 4.69% and a return on equity of 7.10%.

Here are the key takeaways from Westlake Chemical Partners’ conference call:

• Reported Westlake Partners net income of $14 million ($0.40/unit) and distributable cash flow of $18 million ($0.51/unit); consolidated net income was $82 million on $306 million of sales, and trailing 12‑month coverage improved to 1.0x as the impact of the Petro 1 turnaround aged out.
• Announced a quarterly distribution of $0.4714 per unit for Q1, marking the Partnership’s 47th consecutive quarterly distribution and cumulative distribution growth of 71% since the original minimum.
• Management said the Middle East conflict has tightened global feedstock supply and supported higher North American ethylene prices; OpCo sold more third‑party ethylene in March and the ~5% of production sold to third parties is seeing improved margins with potential for further upside in Q2 if prices remain elevated.
• Balance sheet and operations remain conservative with consolidated cash held with Westlake of $81 million, long‑term debt of $400 million (partnership $377M), consolidated leverage ≈1x, OpCo capex of $6 million in Q1, and no planned turnarounds in 2026.
• CFO transition announced — John Bakst joins as CFO on June 15 while Steve Bender will become a special advisor and support the transition, with Steve expected to participate in the Q2 earnings call.

Westlake Chemical Partners Price Performance

NYSE WLKP traded down $0.11 during trading on Thursday, reaching $23.34. 13,522 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 40,383. Westlake Chemical Partners has a 1-year low of $17.75 and a 1-year high of $23.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 2.74 and a current ratio of 2.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $22.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.67. The company has a market cap of $822.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.52.

Westlake Chemical Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.4714 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $1.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.1%. Westlake Chemical Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 136.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Westlake Chemical Partners from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Westlake Chemical Partners from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Westlake Chemical Partners presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Westlake Chemical Partners by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 12,088 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 538 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westlake Chemical Partners by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 33,708 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $640,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Westlake Chemical Partners by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 7,749 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $147,000 after acquiring an additional 1,050 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 7.3% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,911 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 1,282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in Westlake Chemical Partners by 7.2% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 22,654 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $476,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530 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 (NYSE: WLKP) is a publicly traded master limited partnership sponsored by Westlake Chemical Corporation. The partnership owns, operates and acquires a portfolio of ethylene and vinyl manufacturing assets throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. As a downstream producer of basic chemicals and intermediates, WLKP supplies key industrial feedstocks to customers in a variety of end markets.

WLKP’s operations are organized into two primary segments: olefins and vinyls.