Pathstone Holdings LLC Has $6.85 Million Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Pathstone Holdings LLC cut its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 5.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,821 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,420 shares during the quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $6,850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WST. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.8% during the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 593,692 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $195,556,000 after purchasing an additional 37,702 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 401,026 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $132,095,000 after buying an additional 45,208 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 9.8% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 301,339 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $99,258,000 after buying an additional 26,947 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 288,639 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $95,075,000 after buying an additional 30,253 shares during the period. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.5% during the second quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 269,675 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $88,828,000 after acquiring an additional 9,156 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of WST opened at $316.59 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $307.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $314.66. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.93 billion, a PE ratio of 46.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 22.97 and a beta of 1.00. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $265.00 and a 12-month high of $413.70.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.27%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is presently 12.46%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $388,931.20. This represents a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.