Wedmont Private Capital Sells 752 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Wedmont Private Capital trimmed its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 36.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,324 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 752 shares during the quarter. Wedmont Private Capital’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $299,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,231,721 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,066,798,000 after purchasing an additional 244,259 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 28.1% in the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 3,268,478 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $731,747,000 after purchasing an additional 716,442 shares during the period. Durable Capital Partners LP lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% in the first quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $352,190,000 after purchasing an additional 935,721 shares during the period. APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.7% in the first quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,562,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $323,766,000 after purchasing an additional 124,737 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,134,706 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $254,038,000 after purchasing an additional 343,997 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $254.69 on Monday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.43 and a twelve month high of $352.33. The firm has a market cap of $18.31 billion, a PE ratio of 38.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a current ratio of 2.78. The business has a fifty day moving average of $244.20 and a 200-day moving average of $226.37.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $766.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.11 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.43% and a net margin of 16.48%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.52 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is 12.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $311.00 target price for the company. Redburn Partners set a $311.00 price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, September 15th. Wall Street Zen raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Barclays began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $245.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.56.

West Pharmaceutical Services 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.