UMB Bank n.a. Boosts Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,080 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,336,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Seilern Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $145,379,000. FMR LLC raised 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 valued at $178,828,000 after purchasing an additional 396,780 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 21.8% during the third 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 worth $205,114,000 after purchasing an additional 122,361 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 29.7% during the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 444,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $133,271,000 after buying an additional 101,710 shares during the period. Finally, DF Dent & Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 33.0% in the third quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 397,152 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $119,209,000 after buying an additional 98,564 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on WST. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Citigroup began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $430.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $344.87 on Wednesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $265.00 and a 12 month high of $413.70. The company has a market cap of $24.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.17, a PEG ratio of 17.97 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $327.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $312.92.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a $0.21 dividend. 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. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.24%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 12.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $388,931.20. This represents a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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.