Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 14.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,984 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 4,483 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $11,938,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth about $41,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance
Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded down $6.54 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $224.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 949,159 shares, compared to its average volume of 982,552. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $291.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $304.83. The company has a market capitalization of $16.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $197.01 and a 12-month high of $400.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.
West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend
The business 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 dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.56%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of brokerages have recently commented on WST. UBS Group upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $344.00.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on WST
West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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