Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 14.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,184 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 5,631 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $7,042,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter valued at about $329,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 103.8% during the 1st quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 2,230 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $499,000 after acquiring an additional 1,136 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 5,581 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,249,000 after acquiring an additional 1,437 shares during the period. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 106.5% during the 1st quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 53,070 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $11,881,000 after acquiring an additional 27,370 shares during the period. Finally, First National Bank Sioux Falls boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 121.4% during the second quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 4,727 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 2,592 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 3.6%

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $286.82 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.43 and a 52-week high of $348.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.63 billion, a PE ratio of 42.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $260.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $235.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.87.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 16.29%.The firm had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $788.42 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.85 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on WST. Wall Street Zen raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Rothschild Redb upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $349.11.

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.