Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,500 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $328,000.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,231,721 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,066,798,000 after purchasing an additional 244,259 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 28.1% in the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 3,268,478 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $731,747,000 after purchasing an additional 716,442 shares during the last quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% in the first quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $352,190,000 after purchasing an additional 935,721 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.7% in the first quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,562,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $323,766,000 after purchasing an additional 124,737 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,134,706 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $254,038,000 after purchasing an additional 343,997 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.
West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance
Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $259.70 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.78 and a quick ratio of 2.08. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.43 and a 1-year high of $352.33. The company has a market capitalization of $18.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 1.05. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $246.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $226.91.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.33. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 18.43%. The firm had revenue of $766.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $725.11 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.52 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue 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. 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. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 12th. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is presently 12.57%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
WST has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Redburn Partners set a $311.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $311.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $318.56.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on West Pharmaceutical Services
West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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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