Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Acquires 503,601 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 22.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,770,920 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 503,601 shares during the period. West Pharmaceutical Services comprises 1.0% of Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $726,895,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 193.9% during the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 144 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,842.9% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 136 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of WST stock opened at $249.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 3.02 and a quick ratio of 2.34. The company has a market cap of $17.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.68, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.18. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.43 and a 1-year high of $322.34. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $256.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $261.80.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.21. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.06% and a return on equity of 17.90%. The business had revenue of $805.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $795.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.82 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.850-8.200 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.96%.

West Pharmaceutical Services declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 17th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $295.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Evercore dropped their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $390.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.56.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.