Schroder Investment Management Group Buys 23,474 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Schroder Investment Management Group grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 18.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 150,277 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,474 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $39,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 27.7% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,020 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,348,000 after acquiring an additional 1,307 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.1% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,271 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $400,000. Finally, Aviva PLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.4% during the second quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 55,565 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $12,158,000 after acquiring an additional 2,858 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $238.29 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $251.55 and its 200 day moving average is $262.02. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.43 and a 12-month high of $322.34. The stock has a market cap of $17.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.09, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 3.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.21. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 17.90% and a net margin of 16.06%.The business had revenue of $805.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $795.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.850-8.200 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.96%.

West Pharmaceutical Services declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 17th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to repurchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WST shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, January 9th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $295.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $265.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $314.56.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.