West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Sold by AMI Asset Management Corp

AMI Asset Management Corp lowered its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 4.8% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 173,803 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 8,857 shares during the quarter. West Pharmaceutical Services comprises about 2.3% of AMI Asset Management Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. AMI Asset Management Corp’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $38,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WST. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $290,604,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 731.8% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 640,735 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $209,879,000 after buying an additional 563,705 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 83.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,090,603 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $357,238,000 after buying an additional 494,828 shares during the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,277.7% during the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 425,915 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $139,513,000 after buying an additional 417,995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,552,036 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $835,945,000 after buying an additional 266,488 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 0.7%

WST stock opened at $221.12 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.77, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.43 and a 12-month high of $352.33. The stock has a market cap of $15.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.71, a PEG ratio of 5.48 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s 50-day moving average is $214.28 and its 200 day moving average is $254.90.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.23. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.23% and a net margin of 16.13%. The company had revenue of $698.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $685.24 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 13.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $245.00 price objective for the company. Stephens upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $320.00.

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.