Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lowered its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 4.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,290 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,560 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC owned about 0.10% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $7,161,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at $308,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,647,000. Teachers Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Teachers Advisors LLC now owns 65,966 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,596,000 after buying an additional 4,954 shares during the last quarter. Copper Rock Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% in the first quarter. Copper Rock Capital Partners LLC now owns 343,878 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,181,000 after buying an additional 5,795 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Asset Management Co. boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.4% in the first quarter. Capstone Asset Management Co. now owns 10,160 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $829,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.98% of the company’s stock.
Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (WST) opened at 86.40 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.08 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.28 and a 200 day moving average of $88.75. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $70.17 and a 52-week high of $99.91.
West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.01. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 14.02% and a net margin of 11.42%. The company had revenue of $397.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $406 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post $2.70 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 18th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 17th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is 22.22%.
WST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Investment Research cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Jefferies Group LLC reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective (up from $82.00) on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Finally, BidaskClub lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. The company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.18.
In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, CFO William J. Federici sold 54,996 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total value of $5,249,368.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile
West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a manufacturer of packaging components and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products. The Company’s products include vial containment solutions, prefillable systems, self-injection platforms, cartridge systems and components, reconstitution and transfer systems, intradermal delivery solutions, specialty components, and contract manufacturing and analytical services.
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