abrdn plc Sells 6,525 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

abrdn plc reduced its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 169,940 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 6,525 shares during the period. abrdn plc owned 0.23% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $55,581,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 60.8% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 209 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, Hilltop National Bank grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 47.9% in the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 216 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on WST. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup initiated 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 target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $430.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $330.97 on Wednesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $265.00 and a 52-week high of $413.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 3.00. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $332.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $314.27. The firm has a market cap of $23.97 billion, a PE ratio of 49.11, a P/E/G ratio of 19.82 and a beta of 1.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

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

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.