SlateStone Wealth LLC Raises Stock Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

SlateStone Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,090 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 50 shares during the quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $685,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 150.9% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $230.33 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.65 billion, a PE ratio of 34.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $197.01 and a 12-month high of $400.88. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $285.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $303.25.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. As a group, analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.36%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 12.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WST has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com downgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $344.00.

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.