Cromwell Holdings LLC Boosts Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 56.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 231 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $76,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,926 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $631,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.9% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 320 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,980 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,269,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on WST shares. Bank of America increased their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $344.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $203.43 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.70 and a beta of 1.01. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $318.68 and a 200 day moving average of $311.20. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $197.01 and a 1 year high of $400.88.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio 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.