Forte Capital LLC ADV Trims Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Forte Capital LLC ADV lessened its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 133 shares during the quarter. Forte Capital LLC ADV’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $4,777,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WST. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased 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 in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter worth $215,011,000. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1,900.0% during the 3rd quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB now owns 180,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $67,538,000 after purchasing an additional 171,000 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 702.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 126,340 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $44,487,000 after buying an additional 110,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 279,107 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $104,726,000 after buying an additional 84,513 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST traded down $3.44 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $365.02. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 451,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 447,014. The stock has a market cap of $26.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.16, a P/E/G ratio of 6.43 and a beta of 1.05. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $377.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $363.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $310.42 and a 12 month high of $415.73.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.27. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 19.42% and a return on equity of 20.57%. The firm had revenue of $695.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $670.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.98 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 7.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 10.55%.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total transaction of $724,053.78. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $709,708.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CAO Chad Winters sold 815 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.82, for a total transaction of $292,438.30. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $469,695.38. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 2,019 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.62, for a total value of $724,053.78. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $709,708.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 73,978 shares of company stock worth $26,653,772. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on WST shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised 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 lowered 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 report on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $435.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services 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.