Creative Planning Acquires 1,713 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Creative Planning grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 52,261 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,713 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $11,435,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WST. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the first quarter worth $329,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 106.5% during the first quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 53,070 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $11,881,000 after acquiring an additional 27,370 shares during the last quarter. Sivik Global Healthcare LLC lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sivik Global Healthcare LLC now owns 15,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,282,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 121.4% in the 2nd quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 4,727 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,034,000 after acquiring an additional 2,592 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 15.6% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,774 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,233,000 after purchasing an additional 1,990 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $260.08 on Wednesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.43 and a 12-month high of $348.90. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $269.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $242.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.71 billion, a PE ratio of 38.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.08. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 16.29%.The firm had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $788.42 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Cowen started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Redburn Partners set a $311.00 price target on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $349.20.

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.