Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 128,678 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 4,699 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.18% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $43,179,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WST. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,074.0% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 689,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $225,851,000 after buying an additional 676,167 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 731.8% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 640,735 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $209,879,000 after acquiring an additional 563,705 shares in the last quarter. Seilern Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $145,379,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 199.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 595,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $178,828,000 after purchasing an additional 396,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,449.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 257,245 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $84,263,000 after purchasing an additional 240,642 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.

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West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 1.9 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded down $4.24 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $217.26. The stock had a trading volume of 157,290 shares, compared to its average volume of 947,784. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $197.01 and a 52-week high of $396.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $256.73 and a 200 day moving average of $296.18. The firm has a market cap of $15.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. On average, 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.39%. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 12.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on WST shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America lifted their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $332.50.

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.