BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lowered its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,155 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 1,867 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp's holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $3,648,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 199.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 595,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $178,828,000 after purchasing an additional 396,780 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $68,854,000. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $64,196,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 21.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 683,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $205,114,000 after purchasing an additional 122,361 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 29.7% during the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 444,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $133,271,000 after acquiring an additional 101,710 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company's stock.
West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.3 %
WST stock traded down $0.81 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $321.08. 350,159 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 568,714. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.00 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The firm's 50-day moving average is $309.37 and its 200-day moving average is $312.17. The company has a market cap of $23.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.77, a PEG ratio of 24.48 and a beta of 1.01. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.16 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.
West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.26%. West Pharmaceutical Services's payout ratio is presently 12.46%.
Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services
In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services 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 directly owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,931.20. This trade represents a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.
West Pharmaceutical Services 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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