Blair William & Co. IL Trims Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• Blair William & Co. IL reduced its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. by 13.1%, selling 10,849 shares and now holding 71,736 shares valued at $15.7 million.
• West Pharmaceutical Services recently received a buy rating with price targets from various analysts ranging from $275.00 to $350.00.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, reflecting a yield of 0.3% for shareholders of record on November 12th.

Blair William & Co. IL reduced its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 13.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 71,736 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 10,849 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL owned 0.10% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $15,696,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the first quarter worth $27,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 85.0% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 185 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 587.5% during the 2nd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 220 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 1st quarter valued at $53,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $311.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Rothschild Redb raised West Pharmaceutical Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Barclays raised their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $350.00 target price on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $321.89.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $262.10 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $18.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.24, a PEG ratio of 4.68 and a beta of 1.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.43 and a twelve month high of $352.33. The company has a quick ratio of 2.08, a current ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a 50 day moving average of $252.39 and a 200 day moving average of $229.93.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $766.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.11 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.43% and a net margin of 16.48%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.57%.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.