APG Asset Management N.V. Raises Stock Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 8.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,562,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 124,737 shares during the period. West Pharmaceutical Services comprises 1.0% of APG Asset Management N.V.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. APG Asset Management N.V.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $323,766,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WST. AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,520.4% during the 1st quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 794 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $178,000 after purchasing an additional 745 shares during the period. Allstate Corp boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 49.7% during the 1st quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 3,228 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $723,000 after acquiring an additional 1,072 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 174,438 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $39,064,000 after acquiring an additional 6,692 shares in the last quarter. Norinchukin Bank The boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 3,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $808,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the first quarter valued at $2,426,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WST. Barclays initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $245.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.71.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 2.0%

WST opened at $247.57 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 1.05. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.43 and a 12 month high of $352.33. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $232.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $226.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $766.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $725.11 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 18.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.52 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.17%.

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.