Commerce Bank Takes Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Commerce Bank purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,922 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $2,126,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WST. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 337.8% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 65,323 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $16,373,000 after purchasing an additional 50,402 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 146,872 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $40,425,000 after buying an additional 27,745 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 100.2% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 209,660 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $52,549,000 after buying an additional 104,924 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 130,970 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $32,826,000 after buying an additional 8,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 56,693 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $15,599,000 after buying an additional 13,680 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $353.33 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 2.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.24, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.15. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $223.83 and a 1-year high of $386.00. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $349.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $301.06.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $872.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $839.98 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on WST shares. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $360.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.