Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Lowers Stock Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB reduced its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,264 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 45 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $3,035,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 14,777 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,435,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.2% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,941 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,183,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 1,736 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $521,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 10,752 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,227,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.3% during the 3rd quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 36,080 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $10,830,000 after acquiring an additional 10,900 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. UBS Group raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $403.75.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

WST stock opened at $321.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.00 and a quick ratio of 2.23. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $265.00 and a 1-year high of $413.56. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $332.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $314.55. The company has a market capitalization of $23.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.70, a PEG ratio of 19.31 and a beta of 1.01.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.46%.

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.