Bank of Montreal Can Raises Stock Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 174,725 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 16,480 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can owned approximately 0.24% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $54,339,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of WST. LGT Group Foundation purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $68,854,000. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $64,196,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 29.7% during the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 444,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $133,271,000 after acquiring an additional 101,710 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 401,026 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $132,095,000 after acquiring an additional 45,208 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 207,564 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $68,370,000 after acquiring an additional 41,454 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 1.2 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded up $3.97 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $323.32. 391,621 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 634,426. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $308.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $313.34. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $23.42 billion, a PE ratio of 47.97, a PEG ratio of 24.12 and a beta of 1.00. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $265.00 and a one year high of $413.70.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.41% and a net margin of 17.37%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.16 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.26%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is 12.46%.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total transaction of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.