13,478 Shares in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Purchased by SEB Asset Management AB

SEB Asset Management AB bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 13,478 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $3,378,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WST. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 42.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 14,950 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,122,000 after purchasing an additional 4,477 shares during the period. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 152,148 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $41,862,000 after buying an additional 15,678 shares during the last quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth about $3,742,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 559.8% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 9,521 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,620,000 after buying an additional 8,078 shares during the period. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 122,958 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $33,831,000 after acquiring an additional 9,800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WST shares. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Zacks Research raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $410.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, July 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.17.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, CAO Chad Winters sold 896 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.67, for a total transaction of $269,400.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $457,920.41. This represents a 37.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Annette F. Favorite sold 2,817 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.20, for a total value of $859,748.40. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 16,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,135,905.60. The trade was a 14.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of WST stock opened at $358.87 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $221.50 and a 12-month high of $367.66. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $335.41 and a 200-day moving average of $286.58. The company has a market capitalization of $25.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.16.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.45. The business had revenue of $844.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $779.67 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The firm’s revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.45 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 11.76%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.