Rockland Trust Co. Purchases 3,102 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Rockland Trust Co. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,744 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 3,102 shares during the quarter. Rockland Trust Co. owned about 0.08% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $19,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 47.9% during the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 216 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $82,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total transaction of $218,211.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WST shares. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $430.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of WST stock traded up $0.17 on Wednesday, reaching $329.13. 447,227 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 461,325. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $326.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $312.41. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $265.00 and a 1-year high of $413.70. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $23.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 1.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.16 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

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.