MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. Purchases 4,961 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 51.7% in the first quarter, owning 14,566 shares worth approximately $3.26 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have boosted their holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, with 93.90% of the stock owned by hedge funds and institutional entities.
• West Pharmaceutical Services reported $1.84 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding expectations by $0.33, and increased its quarterly dividend from $0.21 to $0.22 per share.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 51.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 4,961 shares during the quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.'s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $3,261,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WST. Durable Capital Partners LP grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 28.1% during 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 in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.8% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 997,882 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $223,406,000 after purchasing an additional 365,575 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter worth about $79,255,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% during 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 buying an additional 244,259 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on WST. Barclays began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday. They set a "buy" rating and a $311.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group raised their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $318.56.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 1.7%

WST stock traded up $4.23 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $257.73. The stock had a trading volume of 542,348 shares, compared to its average volume of 536,439. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.43 and a 1-year high of $352.33. The company has a fifty day moving average of $241.77 and a 200 day moving average of $225.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.58, a PEG ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last posted 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 return on equity of 18.43% and a net margin of 16.48%.The business had revenue of $766.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.11 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.52 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.57%.

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.