West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST Shares Acquired by Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,299 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 1,811 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $5,860,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.5% during the third quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 410 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. RFG Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.2% in the third quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $586,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Faithward Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% in the third quarter. Faithward Advisors LLC now owns 11,855 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,110,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Chad Winters sold 896 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.67, for a total transaction of $269,400.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 1,523 shares in the company, valued at $457,920.41. The trade was a 37.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Annette F. Favorite sold 2,817 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.20, for a total value of $859,748.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 16,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,135,905.60. This trade represents a 14.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 3.2%

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $302.13 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $202.79 and a 52 week high of $330.88. The company’s 50 day moving average is $266.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $265.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $21.35 billion, a PE ratio of 40.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.17.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.45. The business had revenue of $844.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $779.68 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.45 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.750 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.120 EPS. Equities analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to buy up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.76%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $295.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Barclays upped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.89.

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.