Ninety One UK Ltd Has $25.19 Million Stock Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Ninety One UK Ltd grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 33.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 112,510 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 28,235 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd owned approximately 0.16% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $25,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 85.0% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 185 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter worth about $53,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 248.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 261 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $74,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 38.5% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 331 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WST shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $275.00 price target on the stock. Stephens raised West Pharmaceutical Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $320.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE:WST traded down $2.30 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $226.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 465,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 735,933. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.77 and a quick ratio of 2.03. The company has a market cap of $16.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $187.43 and a one year high of $352.33. The business's 50-day moving average is $216.76 and its 200-day moving average is $246.92.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

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