BNP Paribas Financial Markets Raises Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 38.1% in the first quarter, owning 242,911 shares valued at $54.38 million.
• West Pharmaceutical Services reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.84, exceeding the consensus estimate of $1.51, alongside a 9.2% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.21 to $0.22, signifying a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 38.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 242,911 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 67,012 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned 0.34% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $54,383,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 28.1% in the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 3,268,478 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $731,747,000 after acquiring an additional 716,442 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,277.7% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 425,915 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $139,513,000 after acquiring an additional 417,995 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.8% in the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 997,882 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $223,406,000 after acquiring an additional 365,575 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $79,255,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,231,721 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,066,798,000 after acquiring an additional 244,259 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group increased their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $320.71.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST stock traded down $3.20 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $243.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 405,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 502,384. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.43 and a 1 year 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 market capitalization of $17.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 1.05. The company's fifty day moving average is $235.86 and its 200-day moving average is $223.19.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This is a boost 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.