1,610 Shares in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Bought by Formidable Asset Management LLC

Formidable Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 1,610 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $597,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.5% during the third quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $419,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 843 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 945 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 55 North Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. 55 North Private Wealth LLC now owns 708 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 909 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $337,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on WST shares. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $475.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. Zacks Research cut West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $340.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $424.67.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 0.0%

WST stock opened at $399.62 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $223.83 and a 1 year high of $438.27. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $373.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $316.61. The firm has a market cap of $27.84 billion, a PE ratio of 44.85, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.13.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $874.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $827.12 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 18.81%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.67%.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Annette Favorite sold 8,135 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.81, for a total value of $2,772,489.35. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 16,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,740,944.45. This represents a 32.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 15,659 shares of company stock worth $5,443,749 in the last three months. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

West Pharmaceutical Services designs and manufactures packaging components and delivery systems used by the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries. Its products help contain and administer injectable medicines and include elastomeric components, such as stoppers and seals, as well as syringe components and other packaging and delivery solutions.

The company also provides contract manufacturing services for medical devices and pharmaceutical delivery systems. Its customers include companies developing and producing branded, generic, and biologic medicines.

Founded in 1923 by Herman O.