Western Midstream Adjusted EBITDA Rises 12% On Record Gas Volumes, But Per-Unit Profit Slips
The pipeline operator held its 2026 profit guidance and $0.930 payout, and expects capital spending slightly above its $850.0 million to $1.0 billion range.
Western Midstream Partners, which gathers and processes natural gas, crude oil and produced water for producers, posted adjusted EBITDA of $708.3 million for the third quarter, up 12% from a year earlier, on record natural-gas throughput. Profit per unit still fell, and the partnership said it expects capital spending to run slightly above the top of its guidance range.
Volumes up, per-unit profit down
Net income attributable to limited partners was $324.8 million, or $0.78 per diluted unit, against $331.7 million and $0.87 a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA, the partnership's own cash-earnings measure, slipped from $736.5 million in the second quarter.
The partnership gathered record gas throughput of 5.9 billion cubic feet a day, up 8% from the second quarter. Delaware Basin gas hit a record 2.6 billion cubic feet a day, up 20%, mostly because of the Brazos Delaware acquisition that closed in June.
Free cash flow was $244.2 million. After distributions it was negative $148.5 million, which the company attributed to organic growth capital spending. Third-quarter capital expenditures totaled $303.4 million.
Guidance held, spending heading higher
The partnership reaffirmed 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance of $2.750 billion to $2.950 billion. CEO Oscar K. Brown said full-year results should land above the midpoint, with more wells expected to come online in the fourth quarter.
Capital spending is now expected slightly above the high end of the $850.0 million to $1.0 billion range, driven by producers' accelerating activity and the investment in the Solitude Pipeline System. WES bought a 7.5% stake in Solitude, two 48-inch gas pipelines from the Permian Basin to Katy, Texas, operated by WhiteWater.
Brown blamed the sequential EBITDA dip on lower crude-oil and NGL prices, lower DJ Basin throughput and slightly higher operating and maintenance expense, which he called typical for the third quarter. He said tying the Brazos assets into the West Texas Complex by mid-December should "reduce offloads."
Payout and the 2027 plan
WES will pay its $0.930 per-unit distribution, flat with the prior quarter, on November 13. Brown said 2027 capital spending should be relatively in line with 2026, with about 80% directed to the Delaware Basin.
Management hosts its earnings call Thursday at 10:00 a.m. Eastern.
Brown said the partnership's investment-grade balance sheet and liquidity position it to fund growth, return capital to unitholders and keep pursuing acquisitions.
