Wells Fargo & Company MN Has $40.35 Million Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Wells Fargo & Company MN reduced its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 114,592 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,116 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.15% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $40,350,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WST. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $300,250,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.2% in the 3rd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,591,271 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $597,061,000 after purchasing an additional 578,796 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $215,011,000. Findlay Park Partners LLP grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 65.2% in the 4th quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP now owns 457,306 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $161,027,000 after purchasing an additional 180,415 shares during the period. Finally, Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,900.0% in the 3rd quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB now owns 180,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $67,538,000 after purchasing an additional 171,000 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $331.66 on Monday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $310.42 and a 12-month high of $415.73. The stock has a market cap of $24.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.75, a P/E/G ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business’s 50 day moving average is $373.69 and its 200-day moving average is $364.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.27. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.57% and a net margin of 19.42%. The company had revenue of $695.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $670.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.98 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on WST shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $323.00 to $536.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group cut their target price on 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. KeyCorp boosted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating 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, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $435.20.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total transaction of $292,438.30. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $469,695.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Eric Mark Green sold 64,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.85, for a total transaction of $23,077,900.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 152,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,023,943.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total value of $292,438.30. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,309 shares in the company, valued at $469,695.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 132,966 shares of company stock worth $48,293,292 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services 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.