Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Buys New Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 24,272 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $8,999,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WST. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.5% in the third quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $419,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 843 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 945 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 55 North Private Wealth LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. 55 North Private Wealth LLC now owns 708 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 909 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $337,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 0.5%

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $409.01 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.83 and a twelve month high of $438.27. The business has a fifty day moving average of $371.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $315.20. The firm has a market cap of $28.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $874.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $827.12 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 18.81%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.96 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $424.67.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Annette Favorite sold 2,524 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $921,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 21,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,963,570. This represents a 10.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 15,659 shares of company stock worth $5,443,749 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc develops and manufactures components and delivery systems used in the administration and packaging of injectable medicines and other healthcare products. Its offerings include elastomer closures, seals, syringe components, drug-delivery systems, and other specialized packaging components designed to support the safety, quality, and performance of pharmaceutical products.

The company also provides contract-manufacturing services for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical-device customers.