Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Sells 1,382 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC decreased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.9%, selling 1,382 shares, and now holds 26,552 shares worth approximately $5.9 million.
• During the first quarter, several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Durable Capital Partners, increased their investments in West Pharmaceutical, indicating strong institutional support as 93.90% of the stock is owned by such investors.
• West Pharmaceutical reported earnings of $1.84 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and has also announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.21 to $0.22 per share.

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC reduced its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 4.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 26,552 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 1,382 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $5,901,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,231,721 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,066,798,000 after purchasing an additional 244,259 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 28.1% in the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 3,268,478 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $731,747,000 after purchasing an additional 716,442 shares during the last quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% in the first quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $352,190,000 after purchasing an additional 935,721 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.7% in the first quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,562,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $323,766,000 after purchasing an additional 124,737 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,134,706 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $254,038,000 after purchasing an additional 343,997 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $259.70 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $246.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $226.91. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.33. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.43% and a net margin of 16.48%.The firm had revenue of $766.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $725.11 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.52 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is 12.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Redburn Partners set a $311.00 price target on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Rothschild Redb raised West Pharmaceutical Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. UBS Group raised their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, September 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $311.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $318.56.

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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