Copeland Capital Management LLC Sells 3,011 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Copeland Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 95.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 149 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 3,011 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $33,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WST. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $290,604,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 731.8% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 640,735 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $209,879,000 after purchasing an additional 563,705 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 83.1% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,090,603 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $357,238,000 after purchasing an additional 494,828 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,277.7% during the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 425,915 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $139,513,000 after acquiring an additional 417,995 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,552,036 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $835,945,000 after acquiring an additional 266,488 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $219.06 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $214.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $253.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.39, a PEG ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $187.43 and a one year high of $352.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.77 and a quick ratio of 2.03.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 13.19%.

West Pharmaceutical Services 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.

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