West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Purchased by Candriam S.C.A.

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 13.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,975 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 823 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $2,285,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,926 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $631,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 239 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 320 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America upped their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com cut West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $344.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.5 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $231.55 on Monday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $197.01 and a twelve month high of $400.88. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $295.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $305.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.61, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $748.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. As a group, equities analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

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

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.