Swiss National Bank Grows Stock Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 218,800 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 14,600 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $47,873,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,316,804 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,038,517,000 after buying an additional 85,083 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.3% during the second quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,267,319 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $496,089,000 after acquiring an additional 71,836 shares in the last quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% in the first quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $352,190,000 after acquiring an additional 935,721 shares during the period. APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.7% in the first quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,562,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $323,766,000 after acquiring an additional 124,737 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Generation Investment Management LLP purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter valued at $255,072,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST opened at $273.71 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 2.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $269.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $244.21. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $187.43 and a 52 week high of $348.90. The stock has a market cap of $19.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.55, a P/E/G ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 16.29%.The company had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $788.42 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, September 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $311.00 price objective for the company. Cowen initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $349.20.

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.