West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Given Consensus Rating of "Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• West Pharmaceutical Services has received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with two hold ratings, six buy ratings, and one strong buy rating.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $1.84, exceeding the analyst consensus estimate by $0.33, and had a year-over-year revenue growth of 9.2%.
• West Pharmaceutical Services announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, marking a boost from the previous $0.21 dividend.

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the eleven ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $318.5556.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Redburn Partners set a $311.00 price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $245.00 price objective on the stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,110 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,027 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 3,021 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $661,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,318 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 1,970 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST traded down $1.51 during trading on Friday, reaching $255.13. The stock had a trading volume of 633,520 shares, compared to its average volume of 520,317. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a current ratio of 2.78. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $243.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $226.24. The stock has a market cap of $18.35 billion, a PE ratio of 38.19, a PEG ratio of 4.55 and a beta of 1.05. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 1-year low of $187.43 and a 1-year high of $352.33.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $766.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.11 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.43% and a net margin of 16.48%.The business's revenue 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 analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 12th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.57%.

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.