West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Stake Boosted by GAMMA Investing LLC

GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 51.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,298 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 199.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 595,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $178,828,000 after buying an additional 396,780 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter worth about $68,854,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 683,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $205,114,000 after purchasing an additional 122,361 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 29.7% during the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 444,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $133,271,000 after purchasing an additional 101,710 shares during the period. Finally, DF Dent & Co. Inc. grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 397,152 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $119,209,000 after purchasing an additional 98,564 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total transaction of $218,211.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE WST opened at $335.56 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $265.00 and a 1-year high of $413.70. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $323.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $312.12. The company has a market capitalization of $24.30 billion, a PE ratio of 49.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 1.01.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.41% and a net margin of 17.37%. The company had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $709.62 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $437.75.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

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.