Analysts Set West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) PT at $342.20

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $342.20.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Cowen began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. KeyCorp upped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $345.00 target price on West Pharmaceutical Services and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, September 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $311.00 price target on the stock.

Institutional Trading of West Pharmaceutical Services

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Generation Investment Management LLP purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth $255,072,000. Durable Capital Partners LP grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% during the 1st quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $352,190,000 after buying an additional 935,721 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at $200,813,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 22.2% during the third quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,770,920 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $726,895,000 after buying an additional 503,601 shares during the period. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth about $123,667,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 0.7%

WST stock opened at $274.71 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services has a twelve month low of $187.43 and a twelve month high of $348.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 2.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $275.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $254.14.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.29% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The firm had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $788.42 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.04%.

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.