West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Shares Sold by AMI Asset Management Corp

Key Points

• AMI Asset Management reduced its West Pharmaceutical Services stake by 3.5% in the third quarter, selling 5,208 shares and retaining 141,556 shares worth approximately $52.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 93.9% of the company.
• West Pharmaceutical Services reported quarterly earnings of $2.37 per share, exceeding estimates of $2.08, while revenue rose 13.8% year over year to $872.3 million. The company guided for fiscal 2026 EPS of $8.85–$9.05.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend from $0.22 to $0.26 per share, and analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $391.17.

AMI Asset Management Corp lessened its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 3.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 141,556 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 5,208 shares during the quarter. West Pharmaceutical Services comprises about 3.0% of AMI Asset Management Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. AMI Asset Management Corp owned about 0.20% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $52,483,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter worth $2,387,990,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,348,698 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,202,183,000 after acquiring an additional 54,920 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter valued at $733,733,000. Generation Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at $728,168,000. Finally, Findlay Park Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at $214,196,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST stock opened at $388.65 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.83 and a 52-week high of $389.75. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $359.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $334.84.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%. The firm had revenue of $872.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $839.98 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Annette Favorite sold 2,524 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $921,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 21,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,963,570. This represents a 10.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 15,659 shares of company stock valued at $5,443,749. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on WST. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $412.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $340.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $391.17.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc develops and manufactures components and delivery systems used in the administration and packaging of injectable medicines and other healthcare products. Its offerings include elastomer closures, seals, syringe components, drug-delivery systems, and other specialized packaging components designed to support the safety, quality, and performance of pharmaceutical products.

The company also provides contract-manufacturing services for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical-device customers.

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