Bank of New York Mellon Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,904,709 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 301,672 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $761,992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WST. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 16.7% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 69,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $18,304,000 after buying an additional 10,009 shares during the last quarter. North Growth Management Ltd. raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. North Growth Management Ltd. now owns 34,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $8,930,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 83.4% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 502,831 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $111,236,000 after acquiring an additional 228,696 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,610,000. Finally, Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 87.4% in the third quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 136,470 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,800,000 after purchasing an additional 63,638 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $236.08 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $269.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $261.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 2.18. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.43 and a 12 month high of $347.85.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is presently 13.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WST has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group increased their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $345.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, January 9th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $335.78.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.