West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on WST. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $430.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $341.88 on Friday. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 52 week low of $265.00 and a 52 week high of $413.70. 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 cap of $24.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.72, a P/E/G ratio of 19.71 and a beta of 1.00. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $331.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $314.03.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 94,982 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $31,112,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 11,058 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,622,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 19.6% during the fourth quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 489 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,044 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,583,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Accretive Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $946,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.