Federated Hermes Inc. Purchases 2,869 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 227,536 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 2,869 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $59,690,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Truist Financial Corp grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 73.7% in the 3rd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 29,107 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $7,636,000 after purchasing an additional 12,348 shares during the period. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter worth about $219,000. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 22.8% during the third quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 3,449 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $905,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the period. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 13.4% during the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 11,224 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,945,000 after buying an additional 1,322 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $232.20 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.40, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.17. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a one year low of $187.43 and a one year high of $347.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 2.18. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $268.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $260.92.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 20th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. UBS Group raised their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Barclays upped their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $335.78.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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.