West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Purchased by HB Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• HB Wealth Management LLC significantly increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, boosting its position by 898.9% and owning a total of 12,047 shares valued at approximately $2.7 million.
• West Pharmaceutical Services recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, a slight increase from its previous dividend of $0.21, with a current yield of 0.33%.
• UBS Group raised its price target for West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00, reflecting a positive outlook for the company's shares.

HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 898.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,047 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 10,841 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $2,697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.1% during the first quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 5,798 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,288,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. McCollum Christoferson Group LLC increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.0% during the first quarter. McCollum Christoferson Group LLC now owns 43,641 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $9,770,000 after acquiring an additional 447 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 341.7% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 35,469 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $7,941,000 after acquiring an additional 27,439 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.0% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 23,450 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $5,250,000 after purchasing an additional 2,879 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.1% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,636 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded down $4.36 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $244.85. The company had a trading volume of 197,622 shares, compared to its average volume of 872,134. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.43 and a 12-month high of $352.33. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $222.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $237.52. The company has a quick ratio of 2.08, a current ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $17.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.62, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 1.09.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $766.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $725.11 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. The business's revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 12th. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is currently 12.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WST. Wall Street Zen raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. 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 note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $320.71.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.