West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Sold by Federated Hermes Inc.

Federated Hermes Inc. reduced its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 31.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 114,190 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 52,190 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $40,209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. RVW Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 37.9% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 37.4% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 147 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $372.06 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $310.42 and a 52 week high of $415.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.24 billion, a PE ratio of 47.22, a P/E/G ratio of 6.45 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $378.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $364.11.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $732.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $740.43 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 20.12%. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.77 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is presently 10.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total value of $292,438.30. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $469,695.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total value of $724,053.78. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $709,708.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total value of $292,438.30. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $469,695.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WST shares. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. StockNews.com lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group lowered their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $323.00 to $536.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $435.20.

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.