Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Has $12.66 Million Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 1,676.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,676 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned 0.07% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $12,662,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 100.2% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 209,660 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $52,549,000 after buying an additional 104,924 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter valued at $224,000. Compound Planning Inc. raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.6% during the first quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,224 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Modern Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,522 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $385,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 69.9% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 510,516 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $127,956,000 after acquiring an additional 210,112 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on WST. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. 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. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, June 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 price target for the company. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $364.42.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $331.52 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $223.83 and a fifty-two week high of $386.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $337.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $287.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 2.12. The firm has a market cap of $23.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.45, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.16.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $872.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $839.98 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%.The firm’s revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. Analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 11.27%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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.