National Bank of Canada FI Sells 10,727 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

National Bank of Canada FI decreased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 20.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,857 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 10,727 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.06% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $14,479,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 13,230.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 18,662 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $6,571,000 after buying an additional 18,522 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 750,306 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $281,524,000 after acquiring an additional 60,927 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 10.8% in the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,830 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $687,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Ninety One North America Inc. raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. Ninety One North America Inc. now owns 11,720 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $4,127,000 after purchasing an additional 2,368 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 12,958 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $4,563,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded down $1.69 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $366.66. 343,937 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 512,602. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 2.61. The firm has a market cap of $26.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.59, a P/E/G ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 1.05. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $310.42 and a 52 week high of $415.73. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $378.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $363.02.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.27. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 19.42% and a return on equity of 20.57%. The business had revenue of $695.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $670.62 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.98 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services's revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 10.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WST shares. KeyCorp raised their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $323.00 to $536.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $435.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, SVP Silji Abraham sold 7,012 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total value of $2,559,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,660 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,700,900. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Eric Mark Green sold 64,132 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.85, for a total value of $23,077,900.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 152,908 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,023,943.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Silji Abraham sold 7,012 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total value of $2,559,380.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,660 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,700,900. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.