New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 75,679 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 3,791 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.10% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $26,648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the first quarter worth about $25,000. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 37.4% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 147 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.
Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services
In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total transaction of $724,053.78. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,979 shares of the company's stock, valued at $709,708.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total transaction of $724,053.78. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,979 shares of the company's stock, valued at $709,708.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total value of $292,438.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $469,695.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.
West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance
Shares of WST opened at $392.59 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $310.42 and a fifty-two week high of $415.73. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $380.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $363.52. The stock has a market cap of $28.74 billion, a PE ratio of 49.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.73 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.88.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.05. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 20.12%. The company had revenue of $732.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $740.43 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.77 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.20%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.15%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WST shares. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $323.00 to $536.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $435.20.
View Our Latest Research Report on West Pharmaceutical Services
West Pharmaceutical Services Profile
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Free Report)
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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