Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC Sells 9,819 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• Conestoga Capital Advisors cut its West Pharmaceutical Services stake by 8.8%, selling 9,819 shares in the third quarter; it retained 101,475 shares worth about $37.6 million.
• West reported quarterly EPS of $2.66 and revenue of $874.5 million, beating analyst estimates, with revenue up 8.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.22 to $0.26 per share.
• Analyst sentiment was broadly positive, with 13 Buy ratings and one Hold; the consensus price target was $424.67. Shares opened at $409.01 in the article’s cited session.

Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 101,475 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 9,819 shares during the quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC owned 0.15% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $37,623,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WST. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter worth about $2,387,990,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,348,698 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,202,183,000 after purchasing an additional 54,920 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $733,733,000. Generation Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $728,168,000. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 85.4% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 644,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $161,428,000 after purchasing an additional 296,639 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE WST opened at $409.01 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.49 billion, a PE ratio of 45.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.13. The business's 50-day moving average price is $371.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $315.20. The company has a current ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.83 and a 12 month high of $438.27.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $874.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $827.12 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 18.81%. The firm's revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 9.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Annette Favorite sold 8,135 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.81, for a total value of $2,772,489.35. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 16,845 shares in the company, valued at $5,740,944.45. The trade was a 32.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 15,659 shares of company stock worth $5,443,749 over the last ninety days. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WST. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $475.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday. Zacks Research lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $412.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $424.67.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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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