West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Shares Gap Up - Time to Buy?

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $286.44, but opened at $327.50. West Pharmaceutical Services shares last traded at $350.50, with a volume of 288,188 shares traded.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $23.99 billion, a PE ratio of 49.50, a P/E/G ratio of 10.21 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $299.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $322.81.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.22). West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 19.17%. The company had revenue of $702.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $729.36 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.11 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 1,029 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $308,700.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,400. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. LGT Group Foundation bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth about $68,854,000. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter worth approximately $64,196,000. Findlay Park Partners LLP lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 30.6% in the first quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP now owns 597,106 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $236,281,000 after buying an additional 139,800 shares during the period. Iron Triangle Partners LP acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 1st quarter worth $47,381,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 500,662 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $198,117,000 after acquiring an additional 61,247 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.