West Pharmaceutical Services (WST) Competitors

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) and Chemed (NYSE:CHE) are both medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, media sentiment, earnings, risk, dividends, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Which has more volatility and risk, WST or CHE?

West Pharmaceutical Services has a beta of 1.05, indicating that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Chemed has a beta of 0.46, indicating that its share price is 54% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media prefer WST or CHE?

In the previous week, West Pharmaceutical Services had 2 more articles in the media than Chemed. MarketBeat recorded 8 mentions for West Pharmaceutical Services and 6 mentions for Chemed. Chemed's average media sentiment score of 1.46 beat West Pharmaceutical Services' score of 1.40 indicating that Chemed is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
West Pharmaceutical Services	7 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Chemed	4 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has better valuation & earnings, WST or CHE?

West Pharmaceutical Services has higher revenue and earnings than Chemed. Chemed is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than West Pharmaceutical Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
West Pharmaceutical Services	$2.89B	6.43	$492.70M	$6.68	38.71
Chemed	$2.51B	2.66	$302M	$19.45	23.60

Is WST or CHE more profitable?

West Pharmaceutical Services has a net margin of 16.48% compared to Chemed's net margin of 11.56%. Chemed's return on equity of 25.83% beat West Pharmaceutical Services' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
West Pharmaceutical Services	16.48%	18.43%	13.67%
Chemed	11.56%	25.83%	17.77%

Is WST or CHE a better dividend stock?

West Pharmaceutical Services pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Chemed pays an annual dividend of $2.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. West Pharmaceutical Services pays out 12.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Chemed pays out 12.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Chemed has raised its dividend for 16 consecutive years. Chemed is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do institutionals & insiders believe in WST or CHE?

93.9% of West Pharmaceutical Services shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 95.8% of Chemed shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of West Pharmaceutical Services shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 3.3% of Chemed shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Do analysts rate WST or CHE?

West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus price target of $318.56, indicating a potential upside of 23.21%. Chemed has a consensus price target of $578.50, indicating a potential upside of 26.05%. Given Chemed's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Chemed is more favorable than West Pharmaceutical Services.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
West Pharmaceutical Services	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Chemed	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Summary

Chemed beats West Pharmaceutical Services on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.