West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Stock Position Lessened by Grace & White Inc. NY

Grace & White Inc. NY cut its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,810 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 400 shares during the period. West Pharmaceutical Services accounts for about 2.7% of Grace & White Inc. NY’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Grace & White Inc. NY owned approximately 0.06% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $15,426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. CWM LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,614 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $606,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 7.3% in the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,479 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $555,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at $275,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,098.8% in the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,942 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $729,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at $737,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, SVP Silji Abraham sold 7,012 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $2,559,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,700,900. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Eric Mark Green sold 64,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.85, for a total transaction of $23,077,900.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 152,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,023,943.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Silji Abraham sold 7,012 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total value of $2,559,380.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,660 shares in the company, valued at $1,700,900. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WST shares. KeyCorp raised their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $323.00 to $536.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $435.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded up $14.63 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $389.98. 427,080 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 509,088. The company has a market capitalization of $28.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.65, a P/E/G ratio of 6.36 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $377.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $364.02. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $310.42 and a 1 year high of $415.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.88.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $732.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $740.43 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 20.12%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.77 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.15%.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.