MidFirst Bank Buys New Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 2,226 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $799,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 90.9% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 105 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Bayban acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 156.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 100 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST opened at $346.69 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $347.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $296.89. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $223.83 and a one year high of $386.00. 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 cap of $24.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.15.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $872.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $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. As a group, research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 29th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on WST. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $368.08.

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.