Tredje AP fonden Has $1.89 Million Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Tredje AP fonden decreased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 50.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,756 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 5,756 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,885,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,074.0% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 689,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $225,851,000 after acquiring an additional 676,167 shares during the period. Seilern Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at $145,379,000. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 199.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 595,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $178,828,000 after acquiring an additional 396,780 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at $72,646,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,449,811 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,130,020,000 after acquiring an additional 203,198 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 3.0 %

NYSE:WST opened at $230.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.79. The company has a market cap of $16.65 billion, a PE ratio of 34.43, a PEG ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $197.01 and a 52-week high of $400.88. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $285.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $303.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Wolfe Research started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. KeyCorp lowered their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $344.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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.