BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Reduces Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. reduced its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 6.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 46,224 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 3,317 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. owned approximately 0.06% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $13,875,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WST. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 54.7% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 10,574 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $4,181,000 after purchasing an additional 3,738 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 91,756 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $27,541,000 after acquiring an additional 2,037 shares during the period. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter valued at about $1,937,000. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 525.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 18,990 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $7,515,000 after acquiring an additional 15,952 shares during the period. Finally, Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 19.4% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 9,074 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,724,000 after acquiring an additional 1,475 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total transaction of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

NYSE:WST traded down $4.29 on Friday, reaching $316.59. 557,179 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 722,986. 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 50-day simple moving average of $307.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $313.91. The firm has a market cap of $22.93 billion, a PE ratio of 46.97, a P/E/G ratio of 23.91 and a beta of 1.00. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $265.00 and a 12 month high of $413.70.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last issued its 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. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.41% and a net margin of 17.37%. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $709.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.16 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.27%. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is 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.