Allstate Corp Acquires Shares of 2,156 West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Allstate Corp purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 2,156 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $706,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WST. Baron Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,926 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $631,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 239 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $233,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,980 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $3,269,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $275.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $332.50.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded down $16.97 during trading on Friday, reaching $203.00. The company had a trading volume of 988,349 shares, compared to its average volume of 673,536. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.68 billion, a PE ratio of 30.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.22. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $251.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $294.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.79. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $197.01 and a 1-year high of $396.75.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.56%.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.