GAMMA Investing LLC Makes New Investment in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 412 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $154,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WST. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.2% during the 3rd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,591,271 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $597,061,000 after purchasing an additional 578,796 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter worth $215,011,000. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,900.0% in the 3rd quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB now owns 180,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $67,538,000 after purchasing an additional 171,000 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 702.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 126,340 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $44,487,000 after acquiring an additional 110,597 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 279,107 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $104,726,000 after acquiring an additional 84,513 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 2.1 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $360.43 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.88. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $310.42 and a 52-week high of $415.73. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $377.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $364.13. The firm has a market cap of $26.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.55, a PEG ratio of 6.27 and a beta of 1.04.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.27. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 19.42% and a return on equity of 20.29%. The business had revenue of $695.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $670.62 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.98 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.65 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 10.55%.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total value of $292,438.30. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $469,695.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total value of $724,053.78. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $709,708.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WST shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $323.00 to $536.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $435.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services 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.