JPMorgan Chase & Co. Decreases Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has reduced its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 19.0%, bringing their total shares down to 655,176, valued at approximately $146.7 million.
• West Pharmaceutical Services reported better-than-expected earnings with an EPS of $1.84, exceeding analyst estimates, and a revenue of $766.5 million, marking a 9.2% increase year-over-year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend increase, raising it from $0.21 to $0.22 per share, effective November 19th, reflecting a strong dividend payout ratio of 12.57%.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 19.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 655,176 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 153,297 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.91% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $146,681,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WST. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,384 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,653,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 748 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $245,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 11,666 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $3,821,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 1,167 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $382,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Capital Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,365 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,102,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $246.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.78 and a quick ratio of 2.08. The company has a market capitalization of $17.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.87, a P/E/G ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.05. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $229.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $230.03. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $187.43 and a one year high of $352.33.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $766.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $725.11 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 18.43%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WST. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Barclays began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $320.71.

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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