West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Upgraded by UBS Group to Buy Rating

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at UBS Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $390.00 price target on the medical instruments supplier's stock, up from their prior price target of $350.00. UBS Group's price target would suggest a potential upside of 17.60% from the company's current price.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 4.2 %

WST stock traded up $13.40 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $331.62. 436,436 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 563,076. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 52-week low of $265.00 and a 52-week high of $413.70. The company has a market cap of $24.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.19, a P/E/G ratio of 24.22 and a beta of 1.01. The stock's fifty day moving average is $311.37 and its 200-day moving average is $311.71.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The business's quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares in the company, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WST. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 332.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 242 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.