M&T Bank Corp Has $28.43 Million Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

M&T Bank Corp decreased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,739 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,031 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp owned 0.11% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $28,429,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.2% in the third quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,591,271 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $597,061,000 after purchasing an additional 578,796 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $215,011,000. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,900.0% during the third quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB now owns 180,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $67,538,000 after purchasing an additional 171,000 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 702.5% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 126,340 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $44,487,000 after purchasing an additional 110,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 279,107 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $104,726,000 after purchasing an additional 84,513 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:WST traded down $3.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $365.02. 451,107 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 447,014. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $377.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $363.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.16, a PEG ratio of 6.49 and a beta of 1.05. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $310.42 and a fifty-two week high of $415.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $695.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $670.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 19.42% and a return on equity of 20.57%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.98 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.78 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.22%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 10.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. KeyCorp upped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $323.00 to $536.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $435.20.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, CEO Eric Mark Green sold 64,132 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.85, for a total value of $23,077,900.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 152,908 shares in the company, valued at $55,023,943.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, CEO Eric Mark Green sold 64,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $359.85, for a total transaction of $23,077,900.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 152,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,023,943.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total transaction of $724,053.78. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $709,708.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products.