West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. UBS Group raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America increased their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $403.75.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 0.2 %

WST opened at $323.06 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market cap of $23.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.93, a PEG ratio of 19.31 and a beta of 1.01. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 52 week low of $265.00 and a 52 week high of $408.88. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $332.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $315.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WST. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $167,000. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 50,371 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,119,000 after buying an additional 3,526 shares during the period. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 44.6% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 7,195 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,160,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,694 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $809,000 after buying an additional 316 shares during the period. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 2,358 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $708,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.