Empirical Finance LLC Grows Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Empirical Finance LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,416 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the quarter. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $725,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 593,692 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $195,556,000 after acquiring an additional 37,702 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.7% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 401,026 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $132,095,000 after purchasing an additional 45,208 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 9.8% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 301,339 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $99,258,000 after purchasing an additional 26,947 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 11.7% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 288,639 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $95,075,000 after purchasing an additional 30,253 shares during the period. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.5% during the second quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 269,675 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $88,828,000 after buying an additional 9,156 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $314.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.66, a P/E/G ratio of 23.78 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $265.00 and a 12 month high of $413.70. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $305.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $316.18.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.41% and a net margin of 17.37%. The company had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.27%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $388,931.20. This trade represents a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.