Candriam S.C.A. Raises Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Candriam S.C.A. grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 13.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,975 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 823 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $2,285,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $231.55 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market cap of $16.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.61, a PEG ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $197.01 and a 52 week high of $400.88. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $295.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $305.86.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. Research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.36%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 12.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on WST shares. StockNews.com lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. UBS Group upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $344.00.

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.