Alliancebernstein L.P. Sells 2,512,343 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. significantly reduced its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, selling 2,512,343 shares and lowering its position by 96.9% in the first quarter, leaving it with about 0.11% of the company.
• West Pharmaceutical Services reported a Q2 EPS of $1.84, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.51, and experienced a 9.2% year-over-year increase in revenue.
• The firm announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.22 per share, up from $0.21, with a scheduled payment on November 19th.

Alliancebernstein L.P. trimmed its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 96.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,140 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 2,512,343 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned approximately 0.11% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $17,942,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 103.8% during the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 2,230 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 1,136 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 34.7% in the first quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 5,581 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,249,000 after acquiring an additional 1,437 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.7% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the period. Sivik Global Healthcare LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the first quarter worth approximately $2,799,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 8,486 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,899,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. 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 objective on the stock. 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 lifted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $320.71.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 3.9%

WST stock traded down $10.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $253.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 746,173 shares, compared to its average volume of 538,180. The company has a market cap of $18.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.68 and a beta of 1.05. The business's 50 day moving average price is $241.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $225.38. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. 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 earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $766.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $725.11 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.43% and a net margin of 16.48%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.52 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This is a positive change 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%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.17%.

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.