Welch & Forbes LLC Increases Stock Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Welch & Forbes LLC increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 17.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,734 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 545 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,315,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WST. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Addison Advisors LLC raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 37.9% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 90.0% in the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 190 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 46.0% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 235 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.5 %

WST stock traded down $1.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $366.36. 56,926 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 509,320. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $310.42 and a 52 week high of $415.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $378.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $363.02. The company has a market cap of $26.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.59, a P/E/G ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 1.05.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $695.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $670.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 19.42% and a return on equity of 20.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.98 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.55%.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total value of $292,438.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $469,695.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Eric Mark Green sold 64,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.85, for a total value of $23,077,900.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 152,908 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,023,943.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total transaction of $292,438.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $469,695.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com cut West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group reduced their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $323.00 to $536.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $435.20.

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.