West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Stake Lessened by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 14.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,193 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 8,535 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $17,660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 16.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 27.7% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,020 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,348,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,271 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $284,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 78.2% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 449 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 168.4% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 46,332 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $10,137,000 after acquiring an additional 29,067 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on WST shares. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, June 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $412.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $360.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $368.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE WST opened at $352.04 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $223.83 and a one year high of $386.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 2.12. The firm has a market cap of $24.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.15. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $345.18 and its 200-day moving average is $294.61.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%.The business had revenue of $872.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $839.98 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.27%.

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.