West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Sold by Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC

Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC decreased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,747 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 149 shares during the quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $899,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,926 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $631,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 239 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,980 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,269,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on WST. Citigroup began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $332.50.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 7.7 %

WST stock opened at $203.00 on Friday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $197.01 and a 52 week high of $396.75. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $251.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $294.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.34, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.22.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. Equities analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.56%.

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.