Modera Wealth Management LLC Has $924,000 Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,821 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% in 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 period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on WST shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com cut West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wolfe Research started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $344.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 1.8 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $228.12 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $197.01 and a 52 week high of $400.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.49 billion, a PE ratio of 34.10, a PEG ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $303.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $307.87.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. Equities research analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.56%.

West Pharmaceutical Services 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.