R Squared Ltd Buys New Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• R Squared Ltd has acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. by purchasing 1,765 shares valued at approximately $386,000 in the second quarter.
• Several large investors, including Zions Bancorporation and Quarry LP, have also recently bought and increased their positions in West Pharmaceutical Services, leading to a total institutional ownership of 93.90%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for West Pharmaceutical Services, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $343.56, following a recent earnings report that exceeded estimates.

R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,765 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $386,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WST. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake 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 valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 587.5% during the second quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 220 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 83.3% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 275 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WST shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $311.00 price target for the company. KeyCorp increased their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $343.56.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $298.13 on Friday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $187.43 and a one year high of $348.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.44 billion, a PE ratio of 44.17, a PEG ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $259.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $234.13.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 16.29%.The firm had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $788.42 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.85 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

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