Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Buys 1,413 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 17.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,290 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 1,413 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $2,080,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 626 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 2,090 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $685,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.7% during the first quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,110 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $249,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 978 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, MGO One Seven LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 1,277 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $418,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. Stephens upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $320.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $226.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.77. The firm has a market cap of $16.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.51, a P/E/G ratio of 5.42 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $216.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $247.61. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $187.43 and a fifty-two week high of $352.33.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 30th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.

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