Hilton Capital Management LLC Has $1.93 Million Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Hilton Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 84.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 8,803 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,021 shares during the quarter. Hilton Capital Management LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,926,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Generation Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $255,072,000. Durable Capital Partners LP raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 146.8% during the 1st quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,573,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $352,190,000 after purchasing an additional 935,721 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $200,813,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.8% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 997,882 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $223,406,000 after buying an additional 365,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 43.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,134,706 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $254,038,000 after purchasing an additional 343,997 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on WST shares. Zacks Research cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $345.00 price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. TD Cowen began coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $342.20.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $267.03 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $273.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $249.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 2.18. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $187.43 and a fifty-two week high of $348.90.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.29% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The firm had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $788.42 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.85 earnings per share. The business’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. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 13.04%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company 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.