West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Stock Now Rated "Moderate Buy" by Wall Street Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate West Pharmaceutical Services a “Moderate Buy.” Twelve of 14 brokerages recommend buying the stock, while two rate it a hold; the average 12-month price target is $391.17.
• West reported quarterly EPS of $2.37, beating estimates of $2.08, while revenue rose 13.8% year over year to $872.3 million. Management guided for fiscal 2026 EPS of $8.85–$9.05.
• The stock opened at $383.78, near its 52-week high of $387.01, with a market capitalization of approximately $27 billion. Institutional investors own 93.9% of outstanding shares, while insiders sold $5.44 million worth of stock over the past three months.

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $391.17.

WST has been the subject of a number of research reports. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $365.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $340.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Annette Favorite sold 2,524 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $921,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 21,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,963,570. The trade was a 10.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 15,659 shares of company stock worth $5,443,749 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.1% during the second quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 843 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 945 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 13,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $3,452,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Compound Planning Inc. grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,224 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $307,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 90.9% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 105 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

NYSE WST opened at $383.78 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 52 week low of $223.83 and a 52 week high of $387.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.14, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $358.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $333.88.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $872.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $839.98 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.98% and a return on equity of 20.11%. The firm's revenue was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. 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. Equities research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc develops and manufactures components and delivery systems used in the administration and packaging of injectable medicines and other healthcare products. Its offerings include elastomer closures, seals, syringe components, drug-delivery systems, and other specialized packaging components designed to support the safety, quality, and performance of pharmaceutical products.

The company also provides contract-manufacturing services for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical-device customers.

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