West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST – Get Rating) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

WST has been the topic of a number of other reports. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, November 30th. They set a neutral rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $250.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $315.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $291.25.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $329.72 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $287.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $261.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.90 and a current ratio of 3.70. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 1 year low of $206.19 and a 1 year high of $424.00. The company has a market capitalization of $24.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 16th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $708.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $657.16 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 20.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.04 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 7.37 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 25th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.23%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 9.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Eric Mark Green sold 44,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.35, for a total transaction of $14,183,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 85,705 shares in the company, valued at $27,627,006.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WST. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 103.6% in the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 112 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 194.6% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 165 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, BerganKDV Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 884.2% in the third quarter. BerganKDV Wealth Management LLC now owns 187 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the period. 91.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc manufactures and markets pharmaceuticals, biologics, vaccines and consumer healthcare products. It operates through the following business segments: Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products. The Proprietary Products segment offers proprietary packaging, containment and drug delivery products, along with analytical lab services, to biologic, generic and pharmaceutical drug customers.