Brown Advisory Inc. Raises Stock Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 11.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,552,036 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 266,488 shares during the quarter. West Pharmaceutical Services comprises approximately 1.1% of Brown Advisory Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Brown Advisory Inc. owned approximately 3.52% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $835,945,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% in 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 during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 138.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 136 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $211.27 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.58, a PEG ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.22. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $187.43 and a one year high of $372.52. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $217.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $281.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.79.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.23. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. The company had revenue of $698.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $685.24 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.56 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services's quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is currently 13.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on WST. Stephens raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $275.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $332.50.

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.

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