Van ECK Associates Corp Has $217.11 Million Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Van ECK Associates Corp reduced its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 15.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 604,754 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 108,825 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $217,107,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth $2,387,990,000. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,271,866 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $715,884,000 after acquiring an additional 68,330 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,850,401 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $784,259,000 after acquiring an additional 79,481 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter valued at about $733,733,000. Finally, Generation Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter worth about $728,168,000. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WST. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, July 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Zacks Research downgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $360.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $368.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $338.21 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $223.83 and a 12-month high of $386.00. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $350.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $303.61. The firm has a market cap of $23.80 billion, a PE ratio of 43.30, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.15.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%.The business had revenue of $872.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $839.98 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.84 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 29th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 29th. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.27%.

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.