PGGM Investments decreased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 8.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,257 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 1,117 shares during the quarter. PGGM Investments' holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $4,015,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.
West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 1.3 %
WST stock traded up $2.94 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $234.40. 575,025 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 976,295. 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 1-year low of $197.01 and a 1-year high of $400.88. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $283.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $302.66. The company has a market cap of $16.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09.
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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. The company had revenue of $748.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $739.59 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.
West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders 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 0.36%. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is currently 12.56%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research analysts have recently commented on WST shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $332.50.
Read Our Latest Research Report on West Pharmaceutical Services
West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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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