West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Shares Purchased by Saudi Central Bank

Saudi Central Bank lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 89.8% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,042 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 2,386 shares during the quarter. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,387,990,000. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.1% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,271,866 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $715,884,000 after buying an additional 68,330 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,850,401 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $784,259,000 after buying an additional 79,481 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $733,733,000. Finally, Generation Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $728,168,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $337.66 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $349.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $308.63. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.83 and a 52-week high of $386.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.14.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $872.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $839.98 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $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. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 29th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WST. Weiss Ratings raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $447.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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.