Investment Management Corp of Ontario trimmed its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 40.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,380 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 1,636 shares during the period. Investment Management Corp of Ontario's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $714,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WST. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in 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 worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 332.1% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 242 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company's stock.
Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services
In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business'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 in the company, valued at $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance
WST stock traded up $4.29 during trading on Friday, hitting $322.49. 223,945 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 516,902. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 24.36 and a beta of 1.01. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $265.00 and a 52 week high of $413.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $310.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $312.13. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced 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. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The company had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $709.62 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. 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 firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 12.46%.
West Pharmaceutical Services 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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