Nuveen LLC Purchases New Shares in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has invested approximately $79.26 million to acquire 354,005 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (WST), increasing its ownership to 0.49% of the company.
• West Pharmaceutical Services recently posted earnings of $1.84 per share, surpassing the consensus estimate, with a revenue of $766.50 million, indicating a year-over-year growth of 9.2%.
• The company has announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.21 to $0.22, reflecting a dividend yield of 0.4% and a payout ratio of 13.17%.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 354,005 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $79,255,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.49% of West Pharmaceutical Services at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 25.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 949,455 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $212,564,000 after acquiring an additional 194,216 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 53.7% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 2,971 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $665,000 after acquiring an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Cynosure Group LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 902.4% in the 1st quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 10,625 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,379,000 after acquiring an additional 9,565 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 34,091 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $7,632,000 after acquiring an additional 3,841 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on WST. Barclays began 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 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. UBS Group increased their price objective 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 reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note 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 company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $320.71.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE WST traded down $0.04 on Friday, hitting $246.16. The stock had a trading volume of 781,012 shares, compared to its average volume of 876,536. The business's fifty day moving average price is $230.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $229.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.78 and a quick ratio of 2.08. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.43 and a 52-week high of $352.33. The stock has a market cap of $17.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.05.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $725.11 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.52 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 12th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is 12.57%.

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.