West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus analyst rating of “Buy” from 14 covering analysts, with an average 12-month price target of about $355.55.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.13 beating estimates and revenue of $844.9 million, up 21% year over year.
• Despite the bullish outlook, the stock fell modestly in Friday trading to $353.69, and recent insider transactions included share sales by both the CAO and a VP.

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the fourteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $355.5455.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and set a $410.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $360.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST traded down $3.97 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $353.69. 446,112 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 763,998. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $328.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $281.89. The company has a market cap of $24.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.28, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.16. West Pharmaceutical Services has a twelve month low of $206.80 and a twelve month high of $367.66. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.45. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business had revenue of $844.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $779.67 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.45 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services's revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.750 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.120 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, CAO Chad Winters sold 896 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.67, for a total transaction of $269,400.32. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $457,920.41. This represents a 37.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Annette F. Favorite sold 2,817 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.20, for a total value of $859,748.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 16,828 shares in the company, valued at $5,135,905.60. The trade was a 14.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WST. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 90.9% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 105 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Bayban acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 156.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 100 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.

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