West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Acquired by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 78,562 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,516 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $23,587,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WST. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 91,756 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $27,541,000 after purchasing an additional 2,037 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 1st quarter worth $1,937,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 525.1% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 18,990 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,515,000 after acquiring an additional 15,952 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 9,074 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,724,000 after purchasing an additional 1,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 9.7% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 53,747 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $16,133,000 after purchasing an additional 4,740 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.7 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $325.68 on Friday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $265.00 and a 52 week high of $413.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $308.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $313.18. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market capitalization of $23.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 24.42 and a beta of 1.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.35. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The business had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.46%.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total transaction of $218,211.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $388,931.20. This trade represents a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.