Cerity Partners LLC Grows Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 94.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,294 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,566 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,589,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 332.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 242 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth about $82,000. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST opened at $322.78 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $308.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $312.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.00 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.38 billion, a PE ratio of 48.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 24.71 and a beta of 1.01. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $265.00 and a one year high of $413.70.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $709.62 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.41% and a net margin of 17.37%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

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.