International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 39,466.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 26,048 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $7,838,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WST. LGT Group Foundation acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $68,854,000. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter worth about $64,196,000. Iron Triangle Partners LP purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter worth about $47,381,000. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 500,662 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $198,117,000 after buying an additional 61,247 shares during the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 1st quarter valued at about $24,136,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 2.8 %
Shares of NYSE WST traded up $8.57 on Friday, reaching $316.50. 565,726 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 568,851. The company has a 50 day moving average of $301.40 and a 200 day moving average of $320.19. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $265.00 and a fifty-two week high of $413.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.92 billion, a PE ratio of 45.68, a P/E/G ratio of 23.58 and a beta of 1.01.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 in the previous year, the company earned $2.16 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is currently 11.87%.
Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services
In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 1,029 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $308,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,478 shares of the company's stock, valued at $443,400. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.
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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