Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Invests $14.95 Million in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 41,640 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $14,949,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WST. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 337.8% during the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 65,323 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $16,373,000 after purchasing an additional 50,402 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 23.3% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 146,872 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $40,425,000 after buying an additional 27,745 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 100.2% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 209,660 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $52,549,000 after buying an additional 104,924 shares in the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 130,970 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $32,826,000 after buying an additional 8,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter worth about $3,027,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $368.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST stock opened at $338.21 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $23.80 billion, a PE ratio of 43.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.15. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.83 and a 12 month high of $386.00. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $350.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $304.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $872.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $839.98 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.98% and a return on equity of 20.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.84 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.27%.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.