West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Stock Holdings Boosted by Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 22,246 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 915 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $7,287,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 43,181 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $14,144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,377 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth about $222,000. TAP Consulting LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. TAP Consulting LLC now owns 10,562 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,460,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 33,428 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $10,950,000 after purchasing an additional 1,368 shares during the period. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter worth about $299,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. UBS Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $332.50.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST stock opened at $227.59 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $197.01 and a one year high of $400.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.45 billion, a PE ratio of 34.02, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $276.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $301.09.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. The company had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. On average, analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is 12.56%.

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.