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

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the five research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $437.75.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 1.1 %

WST stock opened at $334.26 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $314.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $311.68. The stock has a market cap of $24.21 billion, a PE ratio of 49.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 1.01. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $265.00 and a fifty-two week high of $413.70.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million during 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%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.16 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.25%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $388,931.20. This represents a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of West Pharmaceutical Services

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 332.1% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 242 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.