National Pension Service Acquires 5,178 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• National Pension Service boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 130.1% in Q4, buying 5,178 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 9,158 shares valued at about $2.52 million.
• West Pharmaceutical Services reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, posting EPS of $2.13 versus estimates of $1.68, while revenue rose 21% year over year to $844.9 million.
• The company’s board authorized a $1 billion share buyback, and Wall Street remains upbeat with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $324.

National Pension Service increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 130.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,158 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 5,178 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $2,520,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WST. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 156.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 100 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $340.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $324.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

WST opened at $315.87 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.19 and a 12-month high of $330.88. The stock has a market cap of $22.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.23, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50 day moving average of $285.07 and a 200-day moving average of $267.94. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.45. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 16.85%.The company had revenue of $844.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $779.68 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.750 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.120 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 17th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Annette F. Favorite sold 2,817 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.20, for a total value of $859,748.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 16,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,135,905.60. This trade represents a 14.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 896 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.67, for a total value of $269,400.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $457,920.41. The trade was a 37.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.

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