Marshall Wace LLP Buys 99,006 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 77.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 227,265 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 99,006 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned 0.31% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $74,443,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WST. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 138.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 136 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $209.28 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.43 and a twelve month high of $394.42. The company’s 50 day moving average is $224.75 and its 200 day moving average is $287.97. The company has a market cap of $15.13 billion, a PE ratio of 31.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.22.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released 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. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. The firm had revenue of $748.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 12.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WST shares. Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 target price for the company. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $332.50.

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.