National Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,156 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $706,000.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 150.9% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research firms have weighed in on WST. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock 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 for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com cut West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $332.50.
Get Our Latest Report on West Pharmaceutical Services
West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance
NYSE WST traded down $16.97 on Friday, reaching $203.00. 844,306 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 670,687. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $254.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $295.65. The firm has a market cap of $14.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.34, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.79. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $197.01 and a fifty-two week high of $396.75.
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 the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $748.80 million for 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%. Equities research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.
West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 12.56%.
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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