New York State Common Retirement Fund Purchases 10,409 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,915 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 10,409 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $23,063,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its position in 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 worth $18,304,000 after purchasing an additional 10,009 shares during the last quarter. North Growth Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 17.2% in the 3rd quarter. North Growth Management Ltd. now owns 34,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $8,930,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 83.4% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 502,831 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $111,236,000 after buying an additional 228,696 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter worth about $1,610,000. Finally, Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in 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 worth $35,800,000 after acquiring an additional 63,638 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WST shares. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, December 1st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $285.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. KeyCorp increased their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 20th. Three 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $335.78.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST stock opened at $231.23 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $268.17 and a 200-day moving average of $261.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.17. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.43 and a 12 month high of $347.14. The company has a current ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

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

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.