Peninsula Asset Management Inc. Raises Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Peninsula Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,723 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 190 shares during the quarter. Peninsula Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,909,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,231,721 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,066,798,000 after purchasing an additional 244,259 shares during the period. Durable Capital Partners LP boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% in the 1st quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $352,190,000 after buying an additional 935,721 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.7% during the first quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,562,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $323,766,000 after acquiring an additional 124,737 shares in the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter worth about $255,072,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.5% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,134,706 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $254,038,000 after purchasing an additional 343,997 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of WST stock opened at $270.37 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.87. The stock has a market cap of $19.45 billion, a PE ratio of 40.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s fifty day moving average is $266.39 and its 200-day moving average is $239.95. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.43 and a 1 year high of $348.90.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $788.42 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.85 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. Equities analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on WST. UBS Group increased their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $311.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $349.20.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.