Virtu Financial LLC Acquires New Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 5,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $1,536,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth $41,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 332.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 242 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WST shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $437.75.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $388,931.20. This trade represents a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST traded down $1.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $330.24. 516,108 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 562,879. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 3.00. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $312.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $311.84. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $265.00 and a 52 week high of $413.70. The company has a market cap of $23.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 24.14 and a beta of 1.01.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $709.62 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.16 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.25%. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

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.