West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Bought by Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 3.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,507 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 278 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $2,802,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WST. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth $288,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at $300,250,000. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 82,290 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,976,000 after buying an additional 11,245 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $754,000 after buying an additional 627 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balentine LLC grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 55.9% in the 4th quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 1,584 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $558,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST opened at $309.20 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $265.00 and a 12-month high of $413.70. The stock has a market cap of $22.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.79, a PEG ratio of 10.58 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a 50-day moving average of $304.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $338.16.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $702.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $729.36 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 19.17% and a net margin of 18.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.11 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 1,029 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $308,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,400. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.