Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Sells 437 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC lessened its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,922 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 437 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $3,494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WST. Norges Bank bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter worth $237,367,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.2% in the 3rd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,591,271 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $597,061,000 after acquiring an additional 578,796 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter worth $215,011,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 73.2% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 849,266 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $294,246,000 after acquiring an additional 359,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Select Equity Group L.P. bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter worth $44,610,000. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE WST opened at $377.36 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $310.42 and a 1 year high of $415.73. The stock has a market cap of $27.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.49 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $379.98 and a 200 day moving average of $364.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 2.24.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $732.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $740.43 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 20.12% and a return on equity of 21.60%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.77 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.21%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WST. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $323.00 to $536.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $435.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total transaction of $724,053.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $709,708.98. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total transaction of $724,053.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $709,708.98. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Silji Abraham sold 7,012 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $2,559,380.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,660 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,700,900. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 73,978 shares of company stock valued at $26,653,772. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.