West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Now Covered by Citigroup

Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Free Report) in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $400.00 price target on the medical instruments supplier's stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on WST. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $430.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock traded up $4.18 on Wednesday, hitting $336.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 394,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 436,420. West Pharmaceutical Services has a fifty-two week low of $265.00 and a fifty-two week high of $413.70. The company has a market capitalization of $24.39 billion, a PE ratio of 49.96, a PEG ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 1.00. The stock's 50 day moving average is $324.53 and its 200-day moving average is $312.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 3.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. The business's revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.25%. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services

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

Institutional Trading of West Pharmaceutical Services

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WST. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter valued at $41,000. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $82,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at $90,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.