Analysts Set West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) PT at $326.22

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) has been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and three have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $314.5556.

Several brokerages have issued reports on WST. Evercore lowered their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $390.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, January 9th.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 2.6%

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $249.99 on Wednesday. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 12 month low of $187.43 and a 12 month high of $322.34. The stock has a market cap of $17.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $260.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $261.55. The company has a quick ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 3.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $805.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $795.70 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 17.90% and a net margin of 16.06%.West Pharmaceutical Services’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.82 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.850-8.200 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 13.04%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,704,948 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,545,899,000 after purchasing an additional 388,144 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,271,866 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $715,884,000 after buying an additional 68,330 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 22.2% during the third quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,770,920 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $726,895,000 after buying an additional 503,601 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,869,086 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $512,250,000 after buying an additional 11,962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Generation Investment Management LLP raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 60.0% in the fourth quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 1,561,869 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $429,733,000 after acquiring an additional 585,855 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting West Pharmaceutical Services

Here are the key news stories impacting West Pharmaceutical Services this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Beat-and-guide: WST reported Q4 EPS of $2.04 vs. $1.83 consensus and revenue of $805M, and issued FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $7.85–$8.20 with revenue ~$3.2–3.3B — the core reason investors pushed the stock higher. West Reports Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Strong demand for drug components: Reuters highlights management’s forecast for 2026 profit above estimates driven by robust demand for HVP components (syringes, cartridges), supporting margin and cash‑flow outlook. West Pharma forecasts 2026 profit above estimates on strong demand for drug components
• Positive Sentiment: Proprietary product progress and outlook: Company commentary and analyst notes emphasize SmartDose and HVP-led growth, with management signaling SmartDose sale activity by mid‑2026 — a potential revenue/margin driver. WST’s Q4 Earnings & Sales Beat, SmartDose Sale by Mid-2026, Stock Up
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: TD Cowen reiterated a Buy and kept a $350 price target, citing non‑GLP‑1 growth, margin expansion and regulatory tailwinds — reinforcing investor confidence. Buy Rating on West
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction coverage: Multiple outlets (Yahoo, Seeking Alpha, TipRanks) note stock strength following results and outlook, reflecting broad positive market reception. West Pharmaceutical Services (WST) Is Up 5.2% After Strong 2025 Results And 2026 Organic Growth Outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance detail and call transcript: The full earnings call transcript and slide deck provide execution details and cadence for HVP and SmartDose commercialization — useful for modeling but not new directional news. West Pharmaceutical Services Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Peer/value comparison: A Zacks piece compares Cooper (COO) and WST for value seekers — useful for allocation decisions but not directly driving WST’s move. COO vs. WST: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro market commentary: Coverage noting WST’s role in broader indices/futures is descriptive — relevant for positioning but secondary to fundamentals. Is West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) a Pillar In S&P 500 Futures Performance
• Negative Sentiment: Relative underperformance note: MarketWatch flags that WST has underperformed some competitors recently despite daily gains — a reminder of sector competition and potential valuation scrutiny. West Pharmaceutical Services Inc. stock underperforms despite daily gains

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.