OFI Invest Asset Management Invests $1.22 Million in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,842 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $1,215,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 91,756 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $27,541,000 after acquiring an additional 2,037 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $213,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 26.2% in the 3rd quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 5,589 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,678,000 after purchasing an additional 1,160 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 86.4% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,209 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $663,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 10.1% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 6,533 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,961,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 2.8 %

NYSE:WST traded down $6.54 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $224.23. The stock had a trading volume of 949,172 shares, compared to its average volume of 982,552. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $197.01 and a twelve month high of $400.88. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $289.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $304.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market capitalization of $16.21 billion, a PE ratio of 33.52, a PEG ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $748.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.37%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WST shares. Citigroup began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $344.00.

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.