1,823 Shares in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Acquired by United Services Automobile Association

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association has made a new investment in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc., purchasing 1,823 shares valued at approximately $405,000.
• West Pharmaceutical Services reported earnings per share of $1.84 for the last quarter, surpassing analyst expectations and indicating a 9.2% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend to $0.22, up from $0.21, marking a positive change with an annualized dividend yield of 0.3%.

United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,823 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $405,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WST. Durable Capital Partners LP raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% during the first quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $352,190,000 after purchasing an additional 935,721 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its position 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 valued at $731,747,000 after acquiring an additional 716,442 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its position 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 valued at $223,406,000 after acquiring an additional 365,575 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter valued at $79,255,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased 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 valued at $2,066,798,000 after acquiring an additional 244,259 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Redburn Partners set a $311.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $318.56.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded up $0.57 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $258.92. The company had a trading volume of 95,082 shares, compared to its average volume of 814,890. The stock has a market cap of $18.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.75, a PEG ratio of 4.57 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.08, a current ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $242.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $225.84. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.43 and a 12-month high of $352.33.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $766.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.11 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 18.43%. West Pharmaceutical Services's revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.52 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

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

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.