Russell Investments Group Ltd. Reduces Stock Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 66.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,064 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 86,104 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.06% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $14,442,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WST. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $290,604,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,074.0% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 689,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $225,851,000 after purchasing an additional 676,167 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 731.8% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 640,735 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $209,879,000 after purchasing an additional 563,705 shares during the last quarter. Seilern Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $145,379,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,449.4% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 257,245 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $84,263,000 after purchasing an additional 240,642 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WST has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $332.50.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE WST opened at $203.94 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $14.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.48, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.22. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.43 and a 12 month high of $394.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The company has a 50-day moving average of $234.21 and a 200-day moving average of $290.50.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 12.56%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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.