West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $437.75.

WST has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America increased their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at $388,931.20. This represents a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of West Pharmaceutical Services

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WST. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 742 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.3% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 320 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.2% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,941 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,183,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.8% during the third quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 1,752 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $526,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 12,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,135,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $327.01 on Friday. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 12-month low of $265.00 and a 12-month high of $413.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $316.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $311.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The company’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. Research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.26%. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is presently 12.46%.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.