Elevated Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 94 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Elevated Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,395 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $457,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth $30,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% during the second 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. Hilltop National Bank grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 47.9% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 216 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth about $82,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup started 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 on the stock. Wolfe Research started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $430.20.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total transaction of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $388,931.20. This trade represents a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $339.31 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $326.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $312.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.34, a PEG ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 1.00. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $265.00 and a 12-month high of $413.70. 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 (NYSE:WST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

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