Empowered Funds LLC Invests $9.75 Million in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 27,152 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $9,748,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WST. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at about $1,333,000. Equitable Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $510,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,505,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,949,000. Finally, Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $122,154,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of WST opened at $338.21 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $23.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.30, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 2.82. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $223.83 and a fifty-two week high of $386.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $350.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $303.61.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.98% and a return on equity of 20.11%. The business had revenue of $872.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $839.98 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is 11.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WST. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, July 27th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 target price on the stock. Barclays raised West Pharmaceutical Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $310.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $412.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.08.

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.