New York State Teachers Retirement System Boosts Stock Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 2.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 60,523 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $15,169,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,271,866 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $715,884,000 after buying an additional 68,330 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,850,401 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $784,259,000 after acquiring an additional 79,481 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,869,086 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $512,250,000 after acquiring an additional 11,962 shares during the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 60.0% in the fourth quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 1,561,869 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $429,733,000 after purchasing an additional 585,855 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,531,858 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $421,476,000 after purchasing an additional 53,229 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of WST opened at $365.87 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $25.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.16. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.80 and a 12-month high of $367.66. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $322.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $278.87. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.45. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The company had revenue of $844.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $779.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.750 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.120 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, April 24th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $343.73.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, VP Annette F. Favorite sold 2,817 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.20, for a total value of $859,748.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 16,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,135,905.60. This trade represents a 14.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 896 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.67, for a total value of $269,400.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $457,920.41. The trade was a 37.04% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.60% 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.