West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $367.66 and last traded at $360.9680, with a volume of 546894 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $365.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on WST. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $310.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, June 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $343.73.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Down 1.9%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $322.63 and a 200 day moving average of $278.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.88, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 2.04.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.45. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The company had revenue of $844.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $779.67 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.45 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. As a group, research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, CAO Chad Winters sold 896 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.67, for a total value of $269,400.32. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly 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 at this hyperlink. Also, VP Annette F. Favorite sold 2,817 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.20, for a total transaction of $859,748.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 16,828 shares in the company, valued at $5,135,905.60. The trade was a 14.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Bayban acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 156.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 100 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 90.9% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 105 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.