LGL Partners LLC Buys New Shares in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

LGL Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 651 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $213,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 150.9% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $344.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $220.34 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $311.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $309.75. The stock has a market cap of $15.93 billion, a PE ratio of 32.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $197.01 and a 52-week high of $400.88.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. Equities research analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.38%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.56%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products.