CWA Asset Management Group LLC Has $255,000 Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 9.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 778 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $255,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 199.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 595,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $178,828,000 after acquiring an additional 396,780 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 21.8% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 683,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $205,114,000 after purchasing an additional 122,361 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 29.7% during the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 444,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $133,271,000 after purchasing an additional 101,710 shares during the period. DF Dent & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 33.0% in the third quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 397,152 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $119,209,000 after purchasing an additional 98,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 88.4% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 134,483 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,366,000 after buying an additional 63,102 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of WST stock opened at $336.71 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.96, a PEG ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $325.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $312.49. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $265.00 and a 1 year high of $413.70.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.25%. 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 12.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on WST. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America increased their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $430.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

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.