Atria Investments Inc Grows Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Atria Investments Inc lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 19.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,074 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,475 shares during the quarter. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $2,724,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 142.3% during the 1st quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 29,628 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $11,724,000 after purchasing an additional 17,399 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 54.7% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 10,574 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,181,000 after buying an additional 3,738 shares during the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 70.1% during the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 4,976 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,969,000 after acquiring an additional 2,050 shares during the period. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,937,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 525.1% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 18,990 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,515,000 after acquiring an additional 15,952 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 5.1 %

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $344.12 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $265.00 and a twelve month high of $413.70. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company’s 50 day moving average is $304.87 and its 200 day moving average is $316.60. The company has a market cap of $24.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 24.78 and a beta of 1.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (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 the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.41% and a net margin of 17.37%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.66 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.24%. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.87%.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services 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 transaction of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $388,931.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.