KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Has $5.56 Million Stock Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,400 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 500 shares during the quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $5,558,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WST. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 85.0% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 185 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 587.5% during the second quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 220 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter worth approximately $53,000. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on WST. Barclays raised their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Zacks Research cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, September 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $311.00 price target for the company. Redburn Partners set a $311.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $321.89.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of WST opened at $262.10 on Friday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.43 and a twelve month high of $352.33. The firm has a market cap of $18.85 billion, a PE ratio of 39.24, a PEG ratio of 4.68 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a current ratio of 2.78. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $252.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $229.93.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.33. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 18.43%. The business had revenue of $766.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $725.11 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 12th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.57%.

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.