E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB Sells 400 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB trimmed its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 11.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,039 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 400 shares during the period. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 150.9% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 138.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 136 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $224.15 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.51, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $210.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $263.45. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.43 and a 52-week high of $352.33.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $698.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $685.24 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. The company’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.56 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $332.50.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.