Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Buys 248 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 37.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 914 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $301,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $825,000. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 6,430 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,106,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 138.6% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 136 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,871 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $613,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth $25,436,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 0.9 %

WST stock opened at $225.97 on Wednesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $197.01 and a 52-week high of $400.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market cap of $16.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.78, a PEG ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $301.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $307.34.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on WST. Citigroup began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $344.00.

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.