Vest Financial LLC Decreases Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Vest Financial LLC reduced its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 19.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 196,461 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 48,353 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $51,538,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CX Institutional lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.4% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 939 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. SYM FINANCIAL Corp raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.1% in the second quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,027 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 3,021 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $661,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.0% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,318 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $288,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MJP Associates Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% during the second quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 1,970 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST opened at $246.85 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $271.96 and a 200 day moving average of $260.61. The stock has a market cap of $17.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.36, a PEG ratio of 3.59 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. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.43 and a 52-week high of $348.90.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $804.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $788.42 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.29% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is presently 13.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, December 1st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $285.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $335.78.

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.