Brown Advisory Inc. Has $731.75 Million Stock Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Brown Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 28.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,268,478 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 716,442 shares during the period. West Pharmaceutical Services comprises about 1.0% of Brown Advisory Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Brown Advisory Inc. owned about 4.55% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $731,747,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 33.5% during the first quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 112,510 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $25,189,000 after buying an additional 28,235 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 17.9% during the first quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 9,290 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,080,000 after buying an additional 1,413 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.3% during the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 5,190 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,162,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 25.6% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 388,567 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $86,992,000 after purchasing an additional 79,089 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.2% during the first quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 891 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $199,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on WST shares. Stephens raised West Pharmaceutical Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Barclays began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $275.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $320.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WST traded up $3.40 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $229.58. 400,935 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 735,856. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.04, a P/E/G ratio of 5.42 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.77. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $187.43 and a 52 week high of $352.33. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $216.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $247.61.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $698.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $685.24 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.23% and a net margin of 16.13%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.56 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.19%.

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.