West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $382.00

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately bullish: Fourteen brokerages give West Pharmaceutical Services a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with an average 12-month price target of $382.00.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.37 in EPS versus the $2.08 estimate and $872.3 million in revenue, up 13.8% year over year. Management guided for fiscal 2026 EPS of $8.85–$9.05.
• West declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, or $0.88 annually, while institutional investors own 93.9% of the stock; insiders have sold shares recently.

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $382.00.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WST shares. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $447.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research downgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They set an "outperform" rating and a $375.00 target price for the company.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST stock opened at $374.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 2.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.14. The business's 50-day moving average is $349.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $318.18. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 1 year low of $223.83 and a 1 year high of $386.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%.The business had revenue of $872.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $839.98 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. Analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 11.27%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Annette Favorite sold 8,135 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.81, for a total transaction of $2,772,489.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 16,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,740,944.45. This represents a 32.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,659 shares of company stock worth $5,443,749. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,387,990,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,348,698 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,202,183,000 after acquiring an additional 54,920 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,850,401 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $784,259,000 after acquiring an additional 79,481 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter valued at $733,733,000. Finally, Generation Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter valued at $728,168,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc NYSE: WST develops and manufactures components and systems used to package, contain and deliver injectable medicines and other healthcare products. Its customers include pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies, which use West products in drug administration and medical applications.

The company's offerings include elastomer components such as stoppers, plungers and seals; syringe and cartridge components; vial and container closure systems; and specialized delivery systems for injectable and other complex medicines.

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