West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $332.50.

Several brokerages have commented on WST. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. KeyCorp lowered their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.7% during the first quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 11.6% during the 1st quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 1,755 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 8,486 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,899,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 7.2% in the first quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 72,007 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $16,121,000 after buying an additional 4,820 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cypress Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter worth $780,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

WST stock opened at $206.02 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.89 billion, a PE ratio of 30.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $217.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $285.81. West Pharmaceutical Services has a fifty-two week low of $187.43 and a fifty-two week high of $394.42.

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

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

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

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.