First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 29.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 371 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $104,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vident Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vident Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,769 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $784,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 15.3% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 340 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 722 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $205,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 39.8% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 1,948 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $549,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 92.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
NYSE:WST opened at $345.33 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $25.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.89, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $197.72 and a 52-week high of $349.29. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $325.33.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 29th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.63. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 25.08% and a net margin of 18.19%. The business had revenue of $670.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $614.77 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 21st will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.20%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 20th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 14.29%.
Separately, Zacks Investment Research raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 21st.
In related news, insider Silji Abraham sold 2,171 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total value of $727,285.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,035,795. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.
West Pharmaceutical Services Profile
West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc designs and produces containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products. The Proprietary Products segment offers stoppers and seals for injectable packaging systems; syringe and cartridge components, including custom solutions for the needs of injectable drug applications, as well as administration systems that enhance the safe delivery of drugs through advanced reconstitution, mixing, and transfer technologies; and films, coatings, washing, and vision inspection and sterilization processes and services to enhance the quality of packaging components.
See Also: What is a short straddle?