West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Stake Boosted by Ossiam

Ossiam increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 669.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 56,108 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 48,814 shares during the quarter. Ossiam’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $14,719,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WST. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,704,948 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,545,899,000 after purchasing an additional 388,144 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,271,866 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $715,884,000 after purchasing an additional 68,330 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,770,920 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $726,895,000 after buying an additional 503,601 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 959,525 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $209,944,000 after buying an additional 10,070 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $200,813,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $235.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.02, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $249.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $261.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.71, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.17. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.43 and a 1-year high of $322.34.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $805.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $795.70 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.06% and a return on equity of 17.90%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.850-8.200 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 12.96%.

West Pharmaceutical Services announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 17th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to reacquire up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WST has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $340.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $295.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, December 1st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $285.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.56.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.