Citigroup Inc. reduced its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 32.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 57,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 26,793 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned about 0.08% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $17,116,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.7% during the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 742 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $244,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. RFG Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.3% in the second quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 1,499 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 320 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,941 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,183,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 12,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $4,135,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company's stock.
Insider Buying and Selling 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,931.20. This trade represents a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance
Shares of NYSE:WST traded up $3.97 on Thursday, hitting $323.32. The company had a trading volume of 391,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 634,426. 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. The business has a 50 day moving average of $308.22 and a 200 day moving average of $313.34. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $265.00 and a 52-week high of $413.70. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. West Pharmaceutical Services's revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.26%. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is 12.46%.
About West Pharmaceutical Services
(
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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