West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Stock Price Down 5.1% – What’s Next?

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) traded down 5.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $263.61 and last traded at $265.0250. 308,628 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 672,757 shares. The stock had previously closed at $279.41.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $345.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $335.78.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $19.05 billion, a PE ratio of 39.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $273.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $259.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $788.42 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 16.29%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.04%.

Institutional Trading of West Pharmaceutical Services

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 193.9% in the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 144 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,842.9% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 136 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 573.3% in the 2nd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 202 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.